US OPEN

September 13, 2026

Ben Shelton

Press Conference

A. ZVEREV/B. Shelton

6-3, 7-6, 5-7, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Ben, tremendous two weeks. Great tournament. Questions.

Q. Tough ending. I know it's not what you wanted out there, but just talk about the emotions. You said also you're just getting started, and you want to be back out there. Just tell us about that.

BEN SHELTON: Oh, yeah, I'm motivated. Disappointed with how today went. Happy with how I fought throughout the week, two weeks. Excited with the progress that I feel that I've made, but yeah, this one stings 100%.

Yeah, it's on to the next. Try to keep getting better and show up in Australia even stronger than I showed up here.

Q. You talked about how kind of this two weeks has been problem-solving for you, kind of finding ways to get by maybe guys that you haven't been able to in the past. Other than the obvious with his dominant serve, what makes him such a difficult problem to solve when you have to go to plan B?

BEN SHELTON: I mean, obviously the serve, he's got the best serve in tennis. I broke him today for the first time in 66 games.

I think you combine that with as good as he is as a tennis player outside the serve, you know how complete he is, he's gotten so much better at the net. He's an elite mover at 6'7". He's got a lot of length, so he returns really well. Solid from the baseline and one of the fittest guys on tour too.

Yeah, he's a tough guy to play, 100%. I started to figure some things out in the third set. Yeah, I was pissed. I was kind of tired at the end of the match.

But I think that there's a lot of things that he throws at you out there.

Q. You kind of mentioned it there. You did a lot of the right things to try to solve his serve and get into his games and everything like that. That being said, when you made a lot of the right decisions, what lessons then do you take from a loss like this and say, okay, next time -- when there's nothing basically, you're like, Oh, I wish I had done this, or anything like that? What do you take from it?

BEN SHELTON: Yeah, I definitely didn't execute from the ground the way I wanted to. As the match went on, I wouldn't ask myself anything more out of my backhand side, but I didn't hit my forehand well today. I wasn't accurate with it when I attacked with it.

I made too many errors when I had the ball there on my strings. I either put a great return in the play and had the ball sitting up, or I was playing well from the baseline and had a forehand sitting up. I wasn't amazing attacking on my forehand today. I wasn't great in transition. I made too many errors, and I think that's the big piece from me. I want to be more lethal with my forehand.

It's not easy, you know, playing a guy like him where the chances are -- there's very few chances. You've got to work hard for the points that you win, for sure, but that's for me the piece that was lacking today.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about playing at Sascha's rhythm? I noticed when he was bouncing the ball between first and second, you weren't necessarily getting down into ready position until he kind of gathers. That was obviously a deliberate move on your part. Is it hard to play when somebody plays at quite a slow rhythm?

BEN SHELTON: Yeah, I mean, I think there's not an athlete in the world that you're going to go look and watch them do their thing and they're going to sit in a ready position for 30 seconds before the play starts.

So for me it's the same. I'm not going to sit there in a ready position with my knees bent, tension in my body for 30 seconds while I'm waiting. I'm going to try to stay loose, and you know, I'll let him do his thing when he's up there, but I'm not going to sit there, be locked in, focused, like I said, in a ready position for that long.

Q. Were you talking to the umpire about it? I couldn't quite hear what you were talking to the umpire about.

BEN SHELTON: No, she was telling me I need to get to the line earlier, and I was, like, He can start his routine whenever he wants. I promise you there will never be a time where he serves and I'm not ready. But I shouldn't have to sit at the line -- you know, if he's bouncing the ball 20 to 25 times, I shouldn't have to just sit there for that.

He should be able to start it. He never does less than ten bounces. I'm always going to be ready when he's ready to serve. I think that that is a stupid rule that you got to be sitting there if it's a guy who has his routine. You know, as long as you're ready when he puts his hands together and starts bouncing the ball, that's what should matter.

Q. Good tournament. How did this Sunday feel different than other Sundays in the past? You know, Grand Slam and all the other stuff that we've talked about the last couple of days of what was going on in this match besides just playing tennis.

BEN SHELTON: It's such a cool moment. Walking out on that court today, there's nothing like it. I've never felt anything like that before. Yeah, it's an addicting feeling being in positions like this.

Obviously for me it sucked the last couple of Grand Slams sitting at home for 10, 11, 12 days while the tournament is still going on, watching, you know, everyone else run through the draw. You know, it's motivating. Losing in the final is also motivating, but this is the position I want to be in.

I've always, my whole life, had guys out in front of me, guys that I'm chasing, guys that I'm trying to get on the same level as. I'm a late bloomer. That's just the way that it's always been. It's no different now.

I haven't always been successful the very first time that I've been in finals, whether it was from when I was really young all the way up to the challenger level and now the ATP, Grand Slam level. I think that it's an ongoing process for me. That's the way I see it.

I don't think I'm anywhere near the player that I want to be. I think I'm a great competitor. I think I compete really well out there on the court.

I'm able it stay focused and stay there on the court for many, many hours. I think that's going to help me in the future moving forward.

But, yeah, to win on Sundays, you got to play very, very high level of great tennis. Anyone that you're playing at this stage in the tournament is going to be grooved and playing amazing. Yeah, just got to be better.

Q. Obviously you had some nice comments about what your family and friends mean to you, all the support. What did it mean just to have Trinity do both today? Did you ever look up in the stands to see, Is she here yet, anything like that?

BEN SHELTON: It means everything. Yeah, I knew she was coming. I knew it was going to be pretty close to impossible to get here, but even just making the effort and trying is insane. Yeah, she kind of showed up as I was losing, which for her probably sucked, you know?

But, yeah, we've made a lot of sacrifices for each other. We've, you know, traveled the world to try to support each other when we can. It means a lot, and yeah, same with my family and friends.

So many people have showed up for me, and that's what this is all about, being able to share these moments, share these two weeks with my best friends, my family, people I love. That's why I'm out here doing this. That's why I enjoy it so much. That's who I want to get over the line for.

Yeah, super, super grateful for all the people that I have around me.

Q. You mentioned being tired at the end. I wondered if that felt like from today, just sort of playing in the humid conditions for four hours roughly --

BEN SHELTON: It's way more humid today.

Q. -- or if that was cumulative. Also, I was just wonder about the return pacing, having to wait that long for returns to come, especially second serve. Should there be some sort of rule change, and was that also exhausting having to stand there and wait to start getting into position? It just felt tedious watching it.

BEN SHELTON: I know everybody wants that to be the story. Yeah, I definitely think -- for a first serve, you should be able to do whatever you want, you know. You can use the full 25 seconds every time.

I think that there should be some sort of rule. I'm not sure exactly how you would do it, limiting time on second serve. You shouldn't have unlimited time. I think it's, for our sport, for the fans, I think it's tough to be sitting there that long for the next play, the next action to happen.

I'm sure at some point it will be something that these tournaments look at just because there is such a delay in play, you know, in some matches.

But, no, from me, obviously cumulative. I expect it. I was tired before I took the court today. Finals of a slam. Played almost 30 sets, something like that, over the last two weeks. I wouldn't say my tiredness had to do with standing there and waiting. Just, yeah, cumulative for the tournament.

It's something that I can continue to work to improve, but obviously my first time that I've been here in this position, the most tennis that I've played in two weeks.

Yeah, I don't know if that fully answered your question, but it's the best I got.