Shelton, Paul give us 3 men in the quarters at the Australian Open

MELBOURNE – The next stop Ben Shelton’s first trip outside of the United States will be a place in the Australian Open quarter finals.

The 20-year-old NCAA champion from the University of Florida extended his stay on his debut Melbourne Park by a 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-7(4), 7-6(4), 6-2 win over JJ Wolf in an all-American matchup at John Cain Arena on Monday.

Shelton is only playing in his second Grand Slam tournament – and using his pass for the first time – and he praised himself for being “energetic” and “brave” in the more than 3 1/2 hours he and Wolf made big cuts and momentum exchanged on a day when the temperature has risen above 25 degrees Celsius.

Now, 89th-ranked Shelton meets another unseeded American, 35th-ranked Tommy Paul, who eliminated 24th-ranked Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain 6-2 4-6 6-2 7-5 on Monday.

They join Sebastian Korda – his father won the Australian Open in 1998 – to give the USA three men in the quarterfinals in Melbourne for the first time since 2000. Back then the trio consisted of Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras and Chris Woodruff.

Shelton, Paul and Korda are all in the last eight at a major for the first time. Not so, of course, Novak Djokovic, the 21-time Grand Slam champion, who looked invincible in a 6-2, 6-1, 6-2 win over 22nd-seeded Alex de Minaur of Australia and found this to be his irksome designated The left thigh is no longer a problem.

“I didn’t feel anything today,” Djokovic said, noting he was taking “a lot” of anti-inflammatory pills.

Djokovic, who was unable to play at the Australian Open last year because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19, moved one step closer to a record-extending 10th championship in Melbourne by never facing a break point and claiming half a dozen of service games by de Minaur.

Djokovic moves on to a matchup against number 5 Andrey Rublev. The Russian kept coming back, kept coming back, kept coming back – from a 5-2 deficit in the fifth set, from a pair of match points at a 6-5 deficit, from a 5-0 and a 7: 2-down in the first set-to-10 final tiebreaker – before hedding No. 9 Holger Rune 6-3 3-6 6-3 4-6 7-6 (11-9) in the final Defeated Rod Laver Arena.

Rublev won it when his backhand return slipped off the net line and barely made it to Rune’s side of the court, which was impossible to reach. Rublev flopped onto his back at the baseline and raised both arms as if to say, “Sorry!” — or maybe “Sorry. Not sorry!” – while Rune also threw his bat away.

“I’m at a loss for words, man. I’m shaking,” said Rublev, who stands 0-6 for his career in the Grand Slam quarterfinals. “That ball was right on my side and I don’t know how it transitioned.”

Monday’s women’s draw saw Magda Linette – making her debut at 31 and in her 30th appearance at a Major – advancing to the quarterfinals of a Slam – Karolina Pliskova, Aryna Sabalenka and Donna Vekic.

Linette plays against Pliskova, while Sabalenka faces Vekic in the semifinals. On the other side of the table are Jessica Pegula vs. Victoria Azarenka and Elena Rybakina vs. Jelena Ostapenko.

Left-hander Shelton possesses a powerful serve that produced the fastest serve of the tournament to date at 142 mph (228 km/h) during his first-round win, a defensive instinct and a fighting spirit. Against Wolf, who played college tennis at Ohio State and also made his debut in the main draw in Melbourne, Shelton had just two break points and saved both of them.

Initially, Shelton was a bit quiet at times as he walked under the sun, only to get louder and livelier as the shadows crept across the blue playing surface and the score increased the intensity.

He would throw uppercuts and yell, “Come on!” or “Let’s go!” After earning points and as the close contest drew to a close, Shelton stuck out his tongue and flexed his arms.

“Definitely a grueling match,” said Shelton, whose father Bryan, a career-ranked 55th pro, now coaches the Florida men’s team.

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