Ben Shelton doesn't want to compare his path to Jannik Sinner's since he believes "everyone's story is different" but admits he is hoping that his Toronto Masters triumph is only the start of more great things.
On Thursday, the Shelton captured his maiden Masters win after completing an impressive 6-7 (5) 6-4 7-6 (3) final comeback against Karen Khachanov. For the 22-year-old American, it was his third ATP title, but by far the biggest one.
If you can recall, Sinner's first Masters triumph came two years ago at the exact same spot when he beat Alex de Minaur in the Toronto final. That pretty much marked a breakthrough in the Italian's game, as since then, he has won four Grand Slams and has been holding the world No. 1 spot for nearly a year now.
After Shelton became a Masters champion, a reporter remembered how the Toronto win did wonders for Sinner and asked the American if something similar could happen to him.
Shelton refuses to compare himself to Sinner: I think everyone has a different path...
"Yeah, yeah, you never know. I think everyone has a different path. Everyone's story is written differently. I've kind of done it my way. There's been a lot of guys to look up to, just because how young they have been when they have broken through, and have had so much success at big tournaments. Tennis seems to be a sport that has young champions all the time, which is not common or normal, it's ultra impressive," the 22-year-old explained.
Shelton may not want to compare himself to the best player in the game and put major expectations and pressure on himself. But he surely hopes to do some big things in the near future.
"Yeah, I hope that this week kind of kick starts me and gets me more consistent with the type of tennis that I want to play day-in and day-out," the 22-year-old added.
