Ben Shelton Stops Stan Wawrinka in Swiss Indoors

While tennis tournaments from other parts of the globe stole the spotlight yesterday, the Swiss Indoors offered fans an exciting match on Thursday morning.

Sixth-seeded Ben Shelton defeated Stan Wawrinka in straight sets during their Round of 16 match: 7-6(2), 7-5. While Shelton is a star, Wawrinka was the home favorite in Basel, Switzerland.

Additionally, Wawrinka has been playing at a very high level that belies his age. However, the 39-year-old ultimately could not stop the powerful lefty from America.

The pair battled through two sets, including an intense tiebreaker in the first set. Shelton dominated Sudden Death, taking a 5-0 lead. In the second set, Shelton broke serve at five each.

After narrowly winning the match, the 22-year-old offered kind words, “We were joking in the locker room before the match that he’s been on tour as much as I’ve lived. He’s got a lot of experience and a lot of love around the world. He’s done incredible things for our sport. Especially here in Switzerland. You can tell with the fan support today.”

Shelton continued, “I had to smile at times today because, obviously, it’s against me, but it’s so cool to see a country and tournament get behind a guy like that who’s been such an icon. Shoutout to Stan. I don’t think I’m still going to be out here winning matches at 39.”

Shelton will face the top-seeded Andrey Rublev in the quarterfinals on Friday at 9:20 a.m. EST. It is Shelton’s ninth quarterfinals appearance this season. Shelton is the ATP World No. 23 with a record of 38-23 with one singles title this year.

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