Ben Shelton has shown little sign of slowing down after winning his first Masters 1000 title.
The American stunned the field in Canada, defeating Karen Khachanov in the Canadian Open final, held in Toronto.
The 22-year-old forms part of a strong American men’s contingent on the ATP Tour, alongside Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul and Alex Michelsen.
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Shelton has continued his impressive form this week, defeating Camilo Ugo Carabelli in his opening match. The American was leading 6-3 3-1 when his opponent retired.
After the victory, Shelton spoke of fellow American Coco Gauff. Shelton revealed Gauff has been doing something behind the scenes; something he has no answer for.
Coco Gauff has been ‘talking smack’ about the success of American women compared to the men
During an interview with the Tennis Channel, Shelton revealed Coco Gauff has been ‘talking smack’ in regards to the contrasting success of America’s male and female tennis players in recent history.
In recent memory, the likes of Gauff, Sofia Kenin and Madison Keys have won Grand Slam titles.
Meanwhile, no American man has won a Grand Slam singles title in 22 years. Andy Roddick was the last to achieve the feat, winning the 2003 US Open.
Shelton, who was discussing the pressure he will face as an American at the US Open, said: “Yeah I mean I think there’s always big eyeballs on all of us Americans.
“You know, that’s always the headline and the story and I think it’s inevitable that we’re going to get some of those Grand Slam titles.
“I don’t know who it’s going to be or when it’s going to be, that’s up for you guys to debate. But the state that we’re in now, the number of young guys that we have coming through, the number of guys that we have at the top, it’s just… it’s overwhelming.
“We’re just trying to catch up to the girls. Coco likes talking smack and you know, I can’t say anything back because they’ve had us forever. I don’t know if there was ever a time the American men were doing better than the women.
“So we got something to chase.”
Six American women have won a Grand Slam singles title since the 2003 US Open
Since Andy Roddick’s victory at the 2003 US Open, six American women have lifted Grand Slam singles titles.
In fact, American women have won 25 Grand Slam singles titles since Roddick’s triumph.
The majority of these titles were won by Serena Williams, who captured 17 of these titles. Her sister, Venus, also chipped in with three majors during this period.
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Sloane Stephens won the 2017 US Open, Sofia Kenin won the 2020 Australian Open, and Madison Keys won the Australian Open this year.
Coco Gauff rounds out the list, having won the 2023 US Open and 2025 French Open.