Ben Shelton Headed to the Third Round of the Australian Open

The No. 16 men’s tennis player, Ben Shelton, will take on No. 19 Adrian Mannarino in the third round of the Australian Open at 10:30 p.m.

Round One

Shelton defeated Roberto Bautista Agut in the first round of the Australian Open winning 6-2, 7-6 (7-2), 7-5.

Shelton dominated behind the service line with 14 aces compared to Bautista Agut’s one. Part of that comes from Shelton’s serving speed. His average first serve was 116.196 mph, with his second serve coming in at 100.041 mph. Bautista Agut served at 106.876 mph and 94.448 mph, respectively. Shelton’s top speed came in at 137.944 mph compared to Bautista’s 119.303 mph.

In the match, Shelton also hit 53 winners compared to Bautista Agut’s 16. Bautista Agut had 17 more service points played and four less unforced errors. Other than that, Shelton dominated the other aspects of the match.

Movin' On!@BenShelton wins round one in straight sets over Roberto Bautista Agut, 6-2, 7-6, 7-5.#GoGators | #ausopen pic.twitter.com/8ToPfciDWY

— Gators Men's Tennis (@GatorsMTN) January 15, 2024

In Mannarino’s first match, he beat Stan Wawrinka 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 6-3, 6-0. He had 21 less forced errors than Wawrinka which may be a big factor leading into his match with Shelton.

Round Two

In round two, Shelton defeated Christopher O’Connell 6-4, 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (7-5).

Once again, Shelton’s serve was much faster than his competitor. With a top speed 143.537 mph to O’Connell’s 129.245 mph, he didn’t stand a chance. With 17 aces, Shelton looks to end his matches after a single serve. Unforced errors continued to be a problem for Shelton as O’Connell had 17 less.

17 aces on the night for our guy!@BenShelton advances to round 3 of the #AusOpen

pic.twitter.com/x2cclc0UTq

— Gators Men's Tennis (@GatorsMTN) January 17, 2024

Mannarino took down Jaume Munar 6-3, 6-3, 1-6, 2-6, 6-3. It was the second match in which Mannario had less aces and unforced errors than his opponent.

Match Preview

Mannarino and Shelton previously played in the Miami Open in March. Mannarino won that match 6-4, 3-6, 6-1. Shelton out served Mannarino in every aspect in that match. In his first two matches of this tournament, Mannarino’s fastest serve came in at 123.653 mph which doesn’t come close to Shelton’s 143.537 mph.

The key for Mannarino will be to return Shelton’s serves and don’t allow him to get easy points from aces.

The match will be played in the Kia Arena in Melbourne Australia at 10:30 p.m. EST.