"Never seen anything like it" - Ben Shelton stunned by Jannik Sinner's unique skill after Wimbledon QF loss

Ben Shelton laid bare his amazement at Jannik Sinner's speed of shot after his loss to the reigning World No. 1 in the quarterfinals of the 2025 Wimbledon Championships. The American's three latest Grand Slam campaigns were put to the sword by either Sinner or the top-ranked Italian's fiercest rival in contemporary men's tennis, Carlos Alcaraz.

After Sinner's 7-6(2), 6-4, 6-4 win over Shelton in the last eight of Wimbledon on Wednesday, July 9, the American was asked at a post-match press conference about his recent losses to the Italian and Alcaraz at the tennis Majors. Specifically highlighting his defeats at the hands of Sinner, Shelton suggested that the Italian's shots "are in 2x speed".

"It’s frustrating. There’s a lot of things. It’s two very different players and challenges. With Sinner who I’ve played the most, his ball speed is really high. I’ve never seen anything like it. You don’t see anything like it when you’re going through the draw. When you play him it’s almost like things are in 2x speed. I’m usually pretty good at adjusting to that speed," the ATP No. 10 said.

Going on to reflect on his mistakes in dealing with Jannik Sinner's threat at SW19, Ben Shelton acknowledged the deficiencies in his own serve on the day, along with the weaknesses in his forehand technique. The American added:

"It’s difficult when a guy is hitting the ball that big that consistently off both wings and serving the way he is. I had the right idea for a lot of the match today. I served a lot better than I did in Australia. Smarter. Just went for it. But my first serve percentage dropped in the moments I needed it. I probably played too tentative. It was almost like a lot of the forehands I was hitting that you need to go for against a guy like that, I was kind of spinning them, topping out."

"I'm still learning on the grass" - Ben Shelton

Ben Shelton during his quarterfinal clash against Jannik Sinner at the 2025 Wimbledon Championships (Source: Getty)

In the same post-match press conference, Ben Shelton admitted to his shortcomings on grass, a surface he didn't grow up playing tennis on. He also confessed to not playing in a way that would make Jannik Sinner "uncomfortable" during the pair's quarterfinal contest at the 2025 Wimbledon Championships.

"Like I was playing on a slower hard court or a clay court. For me I’m still learning on the grass what works and what’s most effective. I didn’t have a great day today of doing things that were gonna make him uncomfortable," Shelton concluded.

The American has now lost five matches on the bounce whenever facing Sinner, with his solitary win over the Italian coming back at the 2023 Shanghai Masters.