Ben Shelton became the newest marquee name at the U.S. Open to survive a post-midnight test under the lights — and still walk away with the win.
The No. 8 seed battled past a relentless Denis Shapovalov 7-6 (3), 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-4 in a tense third-round clash Friday night at Arthur Ashe Stadium, with the contest stretching deep into the early hours of Saturday morning.
By the time Shelton sealed the victory, the clock had hit 2:07 a.m., making it the tournament’s record third match this year to finish after 2 a.m.
The victory sends Shelton into the U.S. Open fourth round for the first time since his breakout 2023 run, when he charged all the way to the semifinals.
Next up for Shelton is a Sunday showdown with a rejuvenated Stefanos Tsitsipas, who moved on by defeating No. 18 seed Jiri Lehecka 2-6, 6-1, 7-6 (3), 6-1.
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The 23-year-old American star rode his big serve to another victory.
He had 14 aces, including a a 147 mph serve down the T during the match that lasted 3 hours, 22 minutes.
The Shelton-Shapovalov match didn’t star until around 10:45 p.m. because Serena and Venus put on a show despite dropping a 6-3, 6-7(6), 7-6(7) to Maya Joint and Chan Hao-ching.
“We waited around for three hours, and when we thought that them putting doubles there would maybe just be an hour,” the No. 8 seed told reporters after the match. “So that was hard to deal with. The first set was rough, and then serving for it twice in the second, giving that up, is just unacceptable.
“Not an easy night. Nowhere near my best. I got through it.”