With aces and resilience, Shelton calls NBO title run 'a perfect storm'

TORONTO — Less than 24 hours after besting fellow countryman Taylor Fritz in a rapid-fire sprint of a semifinal Wednesday night, American Ben Shelton went the distance in a marathon final match against Karen Khachanov to claim the crown at the National Bank Open presented by Rogers.

The 22-year-old once again dazzled the crowd at Sobeys Stadium with his blistering serve and crafty rally plays, every ace earning a shout of “Do it again, Ben!” from the stands and each successful dropshot and spirited celebration showing why he’s quickly becoming a fan favourite on the ATP circuit.

And when the match point was awarded in the third-set tiebreaker, Shelton — known as much for his celebratory outbursts and fan interactions mid-match as he is for the fiery service strategy and sneak-attack drop-shots that warrant them — was relatively subdued in his celebration upon claiming the title in tiebreakers, 6-7 (5), 6-4, 7-6 (3). He bowed his head as he approached the net at Centre Court, lifting his bent arm to his forehead as if trying to convince himself it really did happen: Shelton’s first Masters 1000 tournament title. The No. 4 seed and world No. 7 has been on a journey straight up the rankings this year, and on Thursday, he earned every ounce of the crown. Khachanov saw to that, the 29-year-old — who himself reached an important milestone with his second career 1000-level final, and first since 2018 — challenged him on every point.

For nearly three hours on Thursday, Shelton and Khachanov held serve and exchanged points, twice requiring tiebreakers to solve sets — including the third and final bout. The matchup was an interesting study in playing styles, Shelton’s service game shining to the tune of 16 aces (compared to Khachanov’s three) while Khachanov gave up very little and held Shelton accountable for his errors, just as he did one night earlier against Alexander Zverev.

It was a fitting way for Shelton to win, considering how close the match was from start to finish, the showdown playing out like a series of sprints within a marathon 2:47 contest.

Tested early and often in this tournament, Shelton’s resilience was on full display all the way to the final.

"I feel like it was a perfect storm for me this week," Shelton said post-match, his shiny new trophy on the podium to his right. "A lot of tight matches, long matches, played some of the best tennis that I've played this year. And to finish out the week the way that I did, especially with the opponent that I had today, and the way that he was playing, I couldn't be happier."

Shelton’s aggressive approach, including on several occasions a masterclass in serve-and-volley, paid off plenty, but also cost him at times when Khachanov didn’t take the bait. Ultimately, though, it was a necessary game plan to defeat as well-rounded an opponent as Khachanov, who doesn’t miss much.

And when it mattered most — in tight situations, and ultimately, in the third-set tiebreaker, his serve came through.

That was the case all tournament long — just ask the men who tried to stop it. Against Adrian Mannarino in the round of 64, Shelton recorded 16 aces in a straight-sets win. Two days later, he posted 19 more against Brandon Nakashima to take down his fellow American foe. He reached double-digit aces to oust Flavio Cobolli, then did the same against Alex de Minaur. Semifinalist Taylor Fritz held him in check but struggled with his own service game, and in Thursday’s final, Khachanov put up a valiant fight, the two taking turns holding serve for much of the matchup, but ultimately couldn’t keep pace.

Khachanov was no stranger to that serve going into this matchup, as the two squared off earlier this year at Indian Wells, but even with the experience fresh in his mind, he still struggled to rein it in. As he explained after the matchup, so much of Shelton’s service game — from the power and placement to the fact he’s firing it from his left side — is unique.

"It's different because he's lefty. Obviously, it's a huge serve, big serve, I mean, not only in terms of kilometres, but in terms of the placement and the variety, I would say,” Khachanov explained. “You need a lot of time to not only adjust, but even adjusting sometimes is not enough.”

Said Khachanov, “It's different because you know if you come forward and he serves, let's say slice or kick body, then you go back, he serves open wide. Then sometimes he goes full. So, you really don't know what to expect. And then you have to not only make the return in play, but then he comes with a big game after that. So, it's not just to push the ball back, you need to really return properly, so that makes it tough.”

As enticing as this final matchup was, tennis fans know it wasn’t the only big contest on the docket Thursday night.

While the men’s finalists prepared to hit the court at Sobey’s Stadium, Canadian Victoria Mboko’s bid for the 2025 NBO women’s crown was already underway in Montreal. Screens all around the stadium — at the big board as fans entered the grounds, and dotting every lounge and suite — broadcast the 18-year-old’s match against Japan’s Naomi Osaka.

As the men’s final got underway, and Mboko tied Osaka with a second-set win to extend the match, those in attendance split their attention between the rousing rallies happening before them and the rallying game wins piling up for the teenage sensation 550 kilometres northeast. Toronto fans kept their celebrations muted as she climbed her way to the brink of victory, but there was no holding back once she reached the top.

News of Mboko’s victory reverberated around the stadium, reaching everyone but the two players at centre court in Toronto, readying themselves for another rally midway through the first set. With the eighth game tied at 30-all and Khachanov about to set his serve into motion, play came to a standstill as the crowd erupted into a joyous celebration.

Khachanov halted his progress. Shelton emerged from his ready position. Both men dropped their arms to their sides, hands slightly raised in confusion as they looked to the stands, unsure of what to make of the sudden party around them.

When order on the court resumed moments after the sudden uproar, the men’s finalists, too, gave the crowd something to cheer about as they strung together a sensational rally — one of many to follow. Shelton and Khachanov saved one of their best exchanges for the end of the first set, an 18-hit game of cat and mouse that ended in Khachanov’s favour, setting him up for the game win to send the first set into tiebreakers. The crowd was captivated from that point on, and rightly so.

While both men put up points that ignited the crowd, Shelton’s bold net-front approach — even when it failed — earned him the admiration of the Toronto fans through the match. Shelton sent fans to their feet with his rallying win to claim the second set and send the match to a third, clenching his fists and roaring to the crowd, the fans answering back in celebration — clearly, wanting more tennis, and getting it.

“I love getting the crowd involved. Hitting highlight shots, hyping them up. I love hearing the crowd noise,” said Shelton. “For me, this was a week that I was pretty locked in, probably less crowd interactions, but the tennis that I was playing still got people excited.

“For me, it's a big balance of being myself out there, having fun, smiling, which is just my DNA, and focusing and doing what I need to do to get the job done.”

Khachanov and Shelton heaped praise on one another’s efforts during post-match ceremonies on the court, the mutual respect and friendship clear between the two competitors. Asked about his own performance after his loss, Khachanov was just as upbeat despite the disappointing outcome.

"Definitely still it's a positive, great tournament, great run," Khachanov told reporters after the match. "I had some great battles, great wins against top guys. So that's why I give credit to myself for doing that."

While the win is fresh for Shelton, the youngest American Masters 1000 champ since a 21-year-old Andy Roddick claimed the crown in Miami in 2004, it’s hard to look at the trophy and not instantly try to project what’s next.

The National Bank Open has, after all, been a popular launch pad for pros on the rise. Two years ago, it was Jannik Sinner who stood at centre court, trophy in hand, celebrating his first tournament crown at the Masters 1000 level. He was 21 at the time, a star on the rise with a top-10 ranking to prove it after breaking into the single digits that spring. Shelton is still acclimating to his own top-10 status, entered the NBO last week with a shiny new No. 7 ranking, and shouldn’t get too comfortable there as he’s set to make another jump to No. 6 with this win. Might he follow a similar trajectory to the one we’ve seen from Sinner, now more than a year into his stronghold on the No. 1 ranking?

Shelton was hesitant to say as much, of course.

“Yeah, you never know. I think everyone has a different path. Everyone's story is written differently. I've kind of done it my way,” said Shelton, whose path to the pros took him through the NCAA with the University of Florida. “Tennis seems to be a sport that has young champions all the time, which is not common or normal, it's ultra impressive.”

All eyes will be on what comes next and how Shelton builds his game from here.

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