TORONTO \u2014 Ben Shelton, the American rising talent and world No. 7, made his first Grand Slam semifinal at the 2023 U.S. Open as a 20-year-old. Two years later, the box office showman has his maiden ATP Masters 1,000 title.<\/p>\n
In front of 10,805 fans at Sobeys Stadium on Thursday night, Shelton outlasted world No. 16 Karen Khachanov in three sets 6-7 (5), 6-4, 7-6(3) to win the Canadian Open, in what his dad and coach, Bryan, called a \u201cgutty performance.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like it was a perfect storm for me this week,\u201d Ben Shelton said. \u201cA lot of tight matches, long matches, played some of the best tennis that I\u2019ve played this year.\u201d<\/p>\n
There were so many instances throughout this 12-day tournament that Shelton could have gone out. He was down a break in the third set to Brandon Nakashima in the round of 32, before winning a third-set tiebreak. Against Flavio Cobolli in the round of 16, Shelton rallied from down 3-5, with Cobolli serving for the match, also capturing a third-set tiebreak. Shelton was most proud of his resilience throughout this tournament, and that fight ultimately earned him the biggest title of his career.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just continued to match him, and keep holding, and then played an unbelievable [third set] tiebreak,\u201d Shelton said.<\/p>\n
The point that secured the set for @BenShelton<\/a>! @NBOtoronto<\/a> | #NBO25<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/SQMYZU2Aw3<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 ATP Tour (@atptour) August 8, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n After trading the first three service holds, it was Khachanov who secured the first break of the match thanks to an unforced error by Shelton. That gave Khachanov a 4-3 lead and put him two games from the set.<\/p>\n But as he\u2019s shown all tournament, Shelton never gives up. Down 5-4 with Khachanov serving for the set, the resilience was on display as Shelton connected on a 90 mph winner down 30-15. Back-to-back Khachanov errors gave Shelton the break, levelling the first set 5-5.<\/p>\n The first-set tiebreak was a display of Khachanov\u2019s natural power. He was hitting bigger from the baseline, pushing Shelton back and dictating the pace. At 5-5, Khachanov cranked an 86 mph forehand winner to move to set point. Another winner, Khachanov\u2019s third in a row, gave the Russian the first set.<\/p>\n The second set wasn\u2019t short of drama. For Shelton\u2019s second match in a row, there was a technical issue with the electronic line calling (ELC). At 2-2, 15-15, Khachanov served wide and the ball landed out. Because the audio wasn\u2019t working, chair umpire Fergus Murphy called it a fault. The players went to the net to get an explanation. In a classy gesture, Shelton gave Khachanov the first serve opportunity after learning that the audio had malfunctioned.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s Christmas,\u201d Shelton said.<\/p>\n Shelton wasn\u2019t just giving first serves to his opponents. He began increasing the speed on his groundstrokes as the set progressed. After breaking to go up 5-4, Shelton was quickly faced with a 0-40 hole serving for the set. He didn\u2019t panic, connecting on back-to-back winners to force deuce. Facing his fourth break point, Shelton hit a 134 mph unreturnable serve. On set point, Shelton brought Khachanov to the net with a slice. Khachanov hit a backhand crosscourt approach before Shelton replied with a sliding forehand passing shot. Khachanov put the volley in the net, giving Shelton the second set. The American raised his right arm to the crowd as it roared, screaming his trademark \u201cyeah\u201d as the match was pushed to a third set.<\/p>\n Ben Shelton BATTLES to force a third and final set \ud83c\udf7f<\/p>\n Catch the #NBO25<\/a> action on Sportsnet \ud83d\udcfa pic.twitter.com\/yyhm77I9w4<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) August 8, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Shelton got his right leg worked on before the final set began. It didn\u2019t impact his movement or ability to hit blazing shots.<\/p>\n Both players served exceptionally in the third, not giving each other any break points. This match was destined to end in a final-set tiebreak.<\/p>\n Shelton got off to an early mini-break and never gave up the lead. He saved his fastest, crushing shots until after the two-hour mark. No bigger than at 5-2 in the tiebreak, when Shelton unleashed a forehand clapper off the return down the line. He let out a loud grunt and roar as the finish line was near.<\/p>\n Three hours before the final, Shelton worked on his serve with his Dad and coach Bryan. They placed ball containers on the other end of the court so Shelton could practice serving his spots. Several times, Shelton connected with the container.<\/p>\n \u201cPing!\u201d as the container launched backward.<\/p>\n Here is \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8Ben Shelton practicing his serve before the @NBOtoronto<\/a> final. <\/p>\n Shelton trying to land his spots and hit the containers. <\/p>\n What a powerful serve. #NBO25<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/kxxmW5jjVn<\/a><\/p>\n