Ben Shelton cut a tearful figure as he left the court clutching his injured left shoulder last night, forced to retire from his US Open third-round match.
It provoked truly emotional scenes, as a top American hope saw his New York journey cut agonisingly short through no fault of his own.
Before this setback, he seemed destined to bypass Adrian Mannarino in four hard-fought sets.
However, fate had other plans, and Ben Shelton saw his promising campaign dashed.
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There seemed to be some debate following the fourth set as he looked to his father, who passionately beckoned for him to retire.
It is not a move he would have made lightly, but he has since been lauded for it by pundits and fans alike.
Ben Shelton praised for retiring from his US Open match injured
Chanda Rubin is one such notable name who has emerged on Tennis Channel to praise Shelton for making a tough but really ‘smart’ decision.
She claimed: “It was tough to watch, and you just hope it’s not as serious as it looked in the moment.
It’s never the way we want to see a match end. 💔
Ben Shelton had to end his 2025 US Open run due to a shoulder injury in his match against Adrian Mannarino.
The American said it was “the worst pain” he’s ever felt. #TCLive | #USOpen pic.twitter.com/O4SXUemEUu
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) August 30, 2025
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“There’s a lot of things that can go wrong with the shoulder. I mean, it could be a really bad impingement. That would be preferable. It could be torn, but maybe not a bad tear, or it could be something that keeps him out for quite a while, and even something that could require surgery. So hopefully he can find out that information and he can use it and get back healthy, first and foremost.
“He’s got the experience of his dad, and we saw Bryan telling him to call it, just get off the court. Let’s figure out what this is, and let’s, you know, get ahead of it. I think that was a smart decision, and they’re gonna have to make a lot of smart decisions going forward.”
Frances Tiafoe’s instant reaction to Shelton’s retirement likely mirrored what most other players on tour will have felt.
John McEnroe had backed Ben Shelton to challenge for the US Open title
It’s supremely frustrating for Shelton to see his US Open run ended in such devastating fashion.
After all, many were backing him to be the sole disruptor, ready to challenge the dominance of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz after winning his maiden Masters 1000 title in Canada.
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Speaking on the Nothing Major podcast, John McEnroe rated American chances at the event pre-injury by stating: “I like Ben the most. He plays Alcaraz in the quarters, not that we are jumping ahead. I think he has got the best chance of winning the first major for an American for a while. Taylor is the solid guy, never beats himself and is an incredible competitor.
“Frances, I call him the hugger. I love Frances, but you have got to have the killer instinct and grab the guy by the throat. I haven’t quite seen that from him.
“Tommy is not 100% I don’t believe, so I don’t see that happening but we are inching our way closer.”