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Match Details
Fixture: (2) Jannik Sinner vs Ben Shelton
Date: October 25, 2023
Tournament: Erste Bank Open 2023
Round: First round (Round of 32)
Venue: Wiener Stadthalle, Vienna, Austria
Category: ATP 500
Surface: Indoor hardcourt
Prize money: €2,409,835
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | UK - Amazon Prime
Jannik Sinner vs Ben Shelton preview
Second seed Jannik Sinner will play against Ben Shelton in the first round of the 2023 Erste Bank Open.
It has turned out to be a career-best season for Sinner so far. At the start of the year, he won the Open Sud de France in February and notched up runner-up finishes in Rotterdam and Miami.
Sinner reached his maiden Grand Slam semifinal at Wimbledon, where he was bested by Novak Djokovic. The Italian then nabbed his first Masters 1000 title at the Canadian Open. Following a fourth round exit from the US Open, he won his third title of the year at the China Open.
Sinner's next tournament was the Shanghai Masters, where he lost to Shelton in the first round. The 22-year old has won 51 matches this season, a new milestone for him.
Shelton took the world by storm as he reached his first-ever Grand Slam quarterfinal at the Australian Open. However, he was unable to sustain the momentum and won just a handful of matches until the US Open.
Shelton rediscovered his form in New York and advanced to his first Major semifinal, but came up short against Djokovic. The young American has been on fire since then.
Shelton made it to his first Masters 1000 quarterfinal in Shanghai, but lost to Sebastian Korda. The 21-year old then headed to Tokyo for the Japan Open. He made it all the way to the final, his first at the ATP level. He'll fight it out for the title against Aslan Karatsev on Sunday (October 22).
Jannik Sinner vs Ben Shelton head-to-head
Shelton leads Sinner 1-0 in the head-to-head. He won their previous encounter at the 2023 Shanghai Masters in three sets.
Jannik Sinner vs Ben Shelton odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Jannik Sinner vs Ben Shelton prediction
It's quite a tough draw for both players. Sinner will have to meet the player who bested him quite recently. As for Shelton, after traveling to another continent with barely any time to recover, he'll have to take on another in-form player.
A lot will depend on how Shelton will perform in the Japan Open final. He staged quite an impressive comeback against Marcos Giron in the semifinals. Down 6-7, 2-5, the 21-year old flipped the script with his fighting spirit.
A loss in the final could either motivate him even more, or deflate his spirit. Given their form, this match has the makings of another photo finish. Sinner will have taken some pointers from his defeat to the American a couple of weeks ago. The Italian's a fast learner and could beat his younger rival this time.
Pick: Jannik Sinner to win in three sets.
