Ben Shelton has lifted a career-best three tour-level trophies already in 2026 and is currently No. 6 in the PIF ATP Rankings, just one spot below his career high.
Yet, when reflecting on the season so far ahead of the Mubadala DC Open in Washington, Shelton admitted there were mixed feelings and he is hungry to find more during the North American hard-court swing.
“It's been a weird season for me this year,” Shelton said in his pre-tournament press conference in Washington. “A lot of highs, a lot of lows. I've won more titles than I've ever won in a year. Only halfway done with the year. At the same time, there are so many things that I've been frustrated about, disappointed with in my game. I think that there's a lot of room for improvement on the second half of the year, and I'm in a part of the season that I really enjoy and that I play really well in."
Despite his title success, Shelton suffered a first-round exit at Wimbledon and a second-round loss at Roland Garros. At the ATP Masters 100 events this year, he has won just one match across four tournaments, leaving the 23-year-old frustrated with his performances.
“I think for me overall I'd say performance,” Shelton said when asked what has annoyed him in recent months. “I don't know how much of it has been just my level or specific matches, specific situations, decision-making. But for me, I'm somebody who tries to be consistent, I try to be consistent with the way I train, the way I live, how I go about my day-to-day life.
“I guess the inconsistency of my play is what I've been more frustrated about. One of my biggest goals on Tour is to get to the end of tournaments and finish off the week and win titles, which is a part that I didn't have as much before, but I'm getting better and better at now.
“I think some of the frustration comes from those early-round exits that are kind of like the trap rounds for me. I think that being able to be more consistent week in and week out in those situations is important for me.”
Shelton will face a qualifier in his opening match at the ATP 500 hard-court event in Washington, where he is a two-time semi-finalist. The American lost to World No. 125 Otto Virtanen in his opening round at Wimbledon around a month ago, but is pleased with the work he has put in since.
“For me to be able to go to Florida right away, a couple of days after I lost in Wimbledon and get acclimated to the heat right away and start training immediately, it was big for me,” said Shelton, who has won titles in Dallas, Munich and Stuttgart this year.
“I think that fitness is a big part of this part of the season just because of how hot it is and how brutal the conditions can be. So it was nice to get a head start on that. I guess that was kind of the positive that I took away from losing in the first round in a tournament that I usually make deep runs and play well at, but that's tennis.”
The ATP 500 event in Washington will be held from 27 July-2 August, with defending champion Alex de Minaur the top seed.
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