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Jack Snape<\/p>\n
Maddison Inglis leaves Melbourne Park with a lot, including the high-end toaster she\u2019s always wanted. There is pride, having reached the round of 16 at the Australian Open<\/a>, but also disappointment. In the biggest match of the local qualifier\u2019s career, the world No 2 Iga Swiatek proved too polished, securing a 6-0, 6-3 victory on Monday night.<\/p>\n The result leaves no more local players in the women\u2019s singles draw. In the men\u2019s singles, there is only Alex de Minaur, who plays top seed Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday evening.<\/p>\n Against Swiatek, Inglis was up against a top 10 player for only the second time. The first set delivered a bagel, so she set out to prove she was worthy of her place, that she can handle the heat. In the kitchen of Rod Laver Arena, she broke the Pole at the start of the second set and celebrated \u2013 part show, part sincere \u2013 by jumping along the baseline, arms aloft.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Otherwise, that\u2019s it for today \u2013 join us again tomorrow for some absolute bangers.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Sinner, Swiatek and Shelton move into the last eight, but champ Keys is out<\/p>\n Madison Keys, last year\u2019s champion, was beaten in straight sets by her close friend Jessica Pegula, while Iga Swiatek<\/a> also moved into the last eight, thrashing the qualifier, Maddison Inglis; her upcoming meeting with Elena Rybakina is a potential classic.<\/p>\n In the men\u2019s competition, Lorenzo Musetti easily beat Taylor Fritz then, in the evening session, Jannik Sinner<\/a> tightened in the third set but still saw off Luciano Darderi with plenty to spare. Next for him, in a repeat of last year\u2019s semi-final, comes Ben Shelton, who came from a set down to play beautifully in dispatching Casper Ruud.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Sure enough, Shelton begins his interview noting that \u201catmosphere is everything\u201d and tanking the crowd for staying late, especially as he knows they really wanted to see Djokovic.<\/p>\n He\u2019s rowdy on the court so likes rowdy crowds, and from his first experience playing on Cain he fell in love with the tournament, one of his favourites and marked up on the calendar every ear.<\/p>\n Since that first experience, he\u2019s made some mental leaps \u2013 he\u2019s a lot more focused, a lot more locked in to the type of player he is and what he does well and less well. He\u2019s honest with himself but confident and is going to keep improving.<\/p>\n Last year, he lost to Sinner in the semis, but these matches are what you look forward to most. He wants to improve on things he didn\u2019t do that well last year, and he\u2019ll be ready to go in two days\u2019 time.<\/p>\n Finally, he accepts that Djokovic has the most swagger walking about, but when Jim Courier cites him and Musetti next, Shelton cites Alcaraz, then Tommy Paul\u2019s \u201cquiet swag\u201d, adding that if Learner Tien keeps at it, he\u2019ll be another on the list, and Coco Gauff also belongs in that company.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Ruud\u2019s wife is due, so he\u2019s got some good stuff coming; he played pretty well tonight, he just faced an opponent with a bigger game and big-time temperament.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Ben Shelton (8) beats Casper Ruud (12) 3-6 6-4 6-3 6-4<\/p>\n A murderous cross-court forehand, a bellow, and Shelton is through to a quarter-final with Jannik Sinner<\/a> .if he serves \u2013 and volleys \u2013 as he did today, he\u2019s a chance.<\/p>\n Ben Shelton powers his way into the quarter-finals. Photograph: Joel Carrett\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a007.31 EST<\/p>\n A serve-volley point makes 15-0, then a swinging body-serve kicks up on Ruud, too good to return. A service-winner timed at 141mph then takes us to 40-0 and three match points\u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n A double then a forehand whipped cross-court brings Shelton back from 0-30 to 30-all, but from there, Ruud pushes through to hold, meaning that, after change of ends, the American will serve for the match at 5-4 in the fourth. Nothing we\u2019ve seen in the last hour suggests he won\u2019t manage that, but pressure does funny things to even the coolest dudes.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n A forehand to the tootsies then a slam-dunk overhead retrieves 0-15, a big serve and clean-up forehand put Shelton ahead in the game, and he\u2019s flying now. The break is endorsed, he leads 5-3 in the fourth, and is one away from a quarter-final meeting with Jannik Sinner<\/a>, his success rate at the net now an insane 97%.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n A double at 0-15 and Ruud is again in trouble; every hold is a fight for him now. And though he halves his arrears, a forehand into the tape leaps wide, and these two break points feel like match points. Ruud, though, hangs in there, Shelton working hard to haul himself into the rally only to overhit a backhand; that\u2019s five breaking opportunities spurned, but there\u2019s one to come, Ruud goes long, and Shelton is two holds away from the last eight! He\u2019s dominated this match the last 20 minutes, and if he can keep calm it\u2019s hard to see him failing to close it out from 3-6 6-4 6-3 4-3.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n OK, Ruud lands a pair of useful returns and makes 15-30, pressure suddenly on Shelton. And when the Norwegian forces his way to the net next point, he\u2019s got a sniff, but a merely adequate volley then allows a forehand pass which levels the game, and from there, the hold is quickly secured for 2-1 3-3.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Ridiculous work from the back, Shelton plating a decent return then switching momentum in the rally with a nails forehand on the run; his power, athleticism, creativity and ball-striking are dominating now, and another fine return allows a winner for 15-40. Ruud, though, saves both break points, rushes through deuce, and he\u2019s stopping in this match well \u2013 for now. He leads 3-2 in the third but trails 1-2.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n A love hold for Shelton and after the stress of fighting through his last hold, Ruud is back serving again in double-quick time at 2-2 in the fourth; in the time it takes me to type that, he\u2019s down 0-15, and even if nothing comes of it, the sense is that the match is being confiscated.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The problem Shelton has is his backhand \u2013 it used to be the case that if you made him play one the first shot of the rally, he only won the point 15% or so of the time. I\u2019m not sure where it\u2019s at now and, at 23, he\u2019s got time to improve \u2013 he also needs to get to the net more \u2013 BUT HAVE A LOOK! He holds for 1-1 then, out of nowhere, leans out of court to schlep a ludicrous forehand winner cross for 0-15; his athleticism is an outrage. We wind up at 30-all, Shelton given the chance to play a lob when really the point ought to have been over, before putting away a volley in response to Ruud\u2019s tweener and, at 30-all, this feels like it could be the beginning of the end. Oh, and a netted forehand means break point, Shelton gets into it with a good return of a useful serve, then opens shoulders to attack a backhand \u2026 which he swipes wide. Gosh, but a double gifts another chance \u2013 again \u2013 and again, Shelton\u2019s old man exhorts patience, presumably feeling he rushed it with that backhand last go. Ruud, though, nails a forehand to restore deuce once more, and from there closes it out. He trails 1-2 but leads 2-1.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n When chatting about matches like this one, we inevitably find ourselves wondering if either of them has a serious chance of winning a major. I think we can say with certainty that Ruud will not, but Shelton might just have the x-factor that means he hits a flow at the right time. The problem he has, though \u2013 the problem everyone has, though \u2013 is the mighty Sincaraz. When will there next be a slam final that doesn\u2019t feature the big two? I can\u2019t see Sinner losing to either of these this time, nor to Djokovic or Musetti, just as seems really unlikely that any of Demon, Zverev and Tien are ready to beat Alcaraz. Meantie, Ruud holds easily, for a 1-2 1-0 deficit.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Superb hitting from Shelton, who holds to 15 and seals the third set to lead 3-6 6-4 6-3. He loves the big stage and it\u2019s hard to see him losing from here.<\/p>\n Ben Shelton celebrates with his dad (and coach), Bryan, as he takes the third set. Photograph: Mark Baker\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a006.59 EST<\/p>\n A fine forehand, hooked on the run and on to the baseline, means that at 40-30, Ruud faces a bit of pressure, and Shelton nails a backhand winner, taken early and dematerialised cross court; deuce. Not a good time for a double, but that\u2019s what follows \u2013 eeeesh \u2013 and when Shelton leans out wide to direct a decent return, he\u2019s into the point, and eventually a long forehand secures the break! You could see that brewing in the previous couple of games, the American leads 1-1 5-3, and it won\u2019t have escaped his attention that Ruud\u2019s error came playing his best shot. Shelton feels inevitable now.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n A netted volley means no love hold, but when Ruud pays a poor approach, he\u2019s promptly passed, and Shelton leads 4-3 in the third. I\u2019d expect him to attack in the next game.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Ruud nets a backhand for 40-30; an ace down the T secures the hold for 3-3 in the third. This is a really close and entertaining tussle, both men playing pretty well, and I\u2019ve not a clue which of them is going to win. I appreciate, though, that that\u2019s not helpful for people not watching an able to make up their own minds, so I\u2019m going to go for Shelton, whose bigger game looks the more dangerous.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Ruud plays an excellent first rally for 0-15; Shelton spanks down an ace. But at 30-15, an overhit backhand levels the game, then an overhit forehand, following a decent second-serve return, means it\u2019s now Ruud with a chance to break \u2026 quickly extinguished via violent ace down the T. A 19-shot rally follows, won by Shelton via forehand, then a big serve secures the hold, and the American leads 1-1 3-2, the contest on a rolling boil.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Again, Shelton holds easily, then Ruud shanks a backhand for 15-all, the kind of thing that wasn\u2019t happening earlier in the match. A double follows, but a much better serve restores parity at 30-all, then a fine backhand whipped to the corner raises game point; \u201cPatience,\u201d advises Bryan, Ben\u2019s old fella, and when Ruud nets a ground smash, we move to deuce. Shelton then does well to stay in the next point, asks his opponent to play a volley, and when it goes long he has the set\u2019s first breaking opportunity. Ruud, though, restores deuce, a tremendous forehand makes advantage, and from there, the hold is secured for 2-2 in the third.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Ruud responds to going down 0-15 with an ace out wide, the hardest serve in the book when hit into the advantage court \u2013 you need some serious strength to nail that. But he can\u2019t pass Shelton at the net when a slice invites him in, and that makes 30-all, only for a wild forehand to donate game point, quickly taken for 1-1 1-1.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Has momentum switched? Shelton holds easily, Ruud unable to make an impression on his serve, and he leads 1-1 1-0.<\/p>\n Photograph: Joel Carrett\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a006.23 EST<\/p>\n Right, decent get from Shelton and Ruud nets his forehand volley for 0-15 \u2026 but then plays a decent rally for 15-all. And he takes control of the next with a wrongfooting forehand, but has to adjust at the net when playing a ball directed at the body \u2026 only for Shelton to net with most of the court at which to aim. We reach 30-all, and pressure \u2026 which tells when Ruud goes long from the back, the kind of error he\u2019s barely made at all in the match, and then, down set point, he frames a forehand! At the crucial moment, the shot which has defined this match so far lets him down, and Shelton takes the second set 6-4 to level the match at one apiece. We\u2019ve not had any epics in this round, but this feels like it could become one.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Another love hold for Shelton \u2013 I think he\u2019s only lost two points on serve this set \u2013 and now he\u2019s got a bit of scoreboard pressure in his favour, Ruud forced to serve at 4-5 to stay in it.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a006.00 EST<\/p>\n A forehand error offers Shelton a sniff at 40-30, but further forehands take it away from him immediately, and he leads 6-3 4-4. He\u2019s sticking some proper top on those balls \u2013 much more than Shelton, we\u2019re advised \u2013 and this is boiling nicely.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Again, Shelton rushes through a hold, and if this set proceeds to a tiebreaker, ordinarily I\u2019d back the man with the bigger serve and game. But the way Ruud\u2019s playing, it\u2019s no longer as clear which of the two that is, and his consistency on the forehand makes me lean his way.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Another swift Shelton hold, another swift Ruud hold. I don\u2019t think the American expected to have his hitting matched and the tremendous forehand with makes 40-0, the ball sent hurtling form centre to corner, underlines the point. Ruud leads 6-3 3-3 and remains the better player.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Now then: having had 40-15, when Ruud overhits a forehand which brings us to deuce, Shelton has a chance. But then he nails decent lengths until Shelton hooks one wide, a service winner follows, and that dicey situation was quickly and competently averted. Ruud leads 6-2 3-3.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Another shout from Shelton when a shot that looks a lot like a table tennis smash whips by Ruud for a winner that secures another hold. He trails 0-1 but leads 2-1 in the second, and is settled into his rhythm now; can he force a breaking opportunity?<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Shelton hollers to psyche himself up when he holds in game one of set two. He knows the elan which makes him special hasn\u2019t quite been there today and it feels like he\u2019s trying to summon it. Thing is, Ruud\u2019s looked almost impregnable on serve so far, an ace down the T confirming a hold to 15 and a 6-3 1-1 lead.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n \u2026but very quickly, it\u2019s 30-15; big point coming up. And Shelton, having been told by his dad to be smoother on the backhand, overhits one, handing over two set points \u2026 the first seized via service winner. Impressive behaviour from Ruud, who leads 6-3.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n So far, we\u2019ve only had one fourth-round match, men and women, that wasn\u2019t won in straights, but I\u2019d be surprised if that happens here \u2013 there\u2019s not enough between these two for a conclusive doing. Shelton holds for 3-5 then, with Ruud serving for the set, makes 0-15\u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Another hold for Ruud makes it 5-2 and this is really good stuff from him. Shelton, though, loves a contest and loves the big occasion, and also has the power and creativity to hit a seam, so even if he goes behind, he\u2019s got the game to and mentality to fight his way back.<\/p>\n Casper Ruud closes in on the opening set. Photograph: Lintao Zhang\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a005.27 EST<\/p>\n Ruud consolidates comfortably for 4-1 and, so far, he\u2019s maintaining the form of the previous rounds. This is some of the best tennis I\u2019ve seen him play on a hard court \u2013 he\u2019s added pace to his forehand and is doing a good job of getting it into the match.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Ruud holds to 15, and these two look really well matched, both of them whacking the cover off it. The Norwegian is working his forehand into the match and, at 15-30, he finds an amazing angle to lash a winner which breaks the sideline, raising two break points. Shelton, though, responds with a big second serve and an inside-out forehand winner; in comms, Henman notes that he tends to open up when behind, when really he should play like that all the time. Problem being he then serves a double, and Ruud leads 3-1 in the first.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Shelton\u2019s vest somehow looks itchy, like it\u2019s a woollen tank top. But he seems comfy out there, though a long forehands gives Ruud a sniff at 40-30 \u2026 and a double takes us to deuce. We then learn that he\u2019s only beaten one top-20 player on a har court at a major \u2013 Mario Berrettini \u2013 which isn\u2019t that surprising, as he doesn\u2019t quite have the weapons. A point emphasised when a second-serve ace gives Shelton advantage, after which he closes out the hold for 1-1 in the first.<\/p>\n Photograph: Edgar Su\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Big hitting followed by a deft drop earns Shelton a second break point in game one, but he misses with a forehand down the line, having opened up the space and connected nicely. Ruud, though, responds well, securing the hold, and he\u2019s hitting it harder these days \u2013 a necessary improvement given the game\u2019s direction of travel.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n I said earlier that the top six seeds are into the last eight of the women\u2019s competition; well, that\u2019s also the case in the men\u2019s. We\u2019ve never had that happen in the open era, and it does feel like the best players are now pretty well established \u2013 though the talent pool is deeper than ever before.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n I watched Ruud in round one and he was superb against a difficult opponent. I didn\u2019t catch his matches with Munar and Cilic, but dispatching those for the loss of just one set is impressive. Anyway, off we go\u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n So how will this match go? Shelton has the bigger game and is really good on the big occasion; if it\u2019s firing, his forehand will decide this match, but if it\u2019s off, Ruud\u2019s consistency in the longer rallies will make the difference.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Shelton and Ruud are making their way on to Laver.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Next on Laver: Ben Shelton (8) v Casper Ruud (12).<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Now on to Iga, she says she felt confident from the beginning. The pace of the ball was different ot he last round so she had to adjust the position of her legs.<\/p>\n Otherwise, she doesn\u2019t know what she\u2019ll do tomorrow but knows it\u2019s going to be 42 degrees \u2013 Jelena Dokic corrects her, it\u2019s 44 \u2013 and that\u2019s pretty much it. I\u2019m not sure why we didn\u2019t get a proper interview, perhaps they want the next match on as soon as possible.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Sinner says he and Darderi are good friends off the court, which adds an extra layer to things. He missed his chances to break in set three, then got \u201cvery very tight\u201d, so he\u2019s happy to close the match in three.<\/p>\n Told he\u2019s just broken his own record, set last week, for aces in a match, and asked if that\u2019s work in the off-season, he laughs that he wishes it was as easy as that. They did change the motion and it\u2019s a bit more stable, but there\u2019s other stuff to get better at, principally coming to the net and being more unpredictable \u2013 or even less predictable. Today that went well.<\/p>\n He knows Ruud and Shelton well, but they\u2019ve worked a lot and everyone is improving. He\u2019ll check some of the match, but the main thing is to recover and he\u2019s very happy to be in the last eight again.<\/p>\n