ATP Tour

Shelton joins Washington, Ashe in historic feat: 'It inspires so many'

A video of Ben Shelton as a 14-year-old hitting on a practice court with MaliVai Washington has been making the rounds on social media in the days leading up to the US Open final.

The footage has added significance because, nine years after it was filmed, Shelton has become the first African American man to reach a Grand Slam singles final since Washington at Wimbledon in 1996. At the time, there was no indication that the talented teenager would one day follow Washington into a major final, ending a 30-year wait for another African American man to reach that stage.

“Over the past couple days, people have sent me a video of me on the tennis court with Ben,” Washington told ATPTour.com. “I had forgotten all about it, but I remember his mom took him to a camp here in Jacksonville. At that point you could tell he was talented.

“I distinctly remember him having good hands. He liked to just mess around on the court and have fun. That was him. That's his personality, and I think that's still his personality today.”

The connection between the Shelton and Washington families goes back further than that 2017 camp. Ben's father and coach, Bryan Shelton, faced Washington six times on the ATP Tour before later coaching Washington toward the end of his playing career.

Nine years on from that practice session, Shelton is preparing to play top seed and World No. 2 Alexander Zverev in the US Open final on Sunday. By reaching the championship match, Shelton has joined Washington and Arthur Ashe as the only African American men to reach a Grand Slam singles final in the Open Era.

Shelton's semi-final against Frances Tiafoe guaranteed that, regardless of the result, an African American man would reach a major final for the first time since Washington's run at Wimbledon in 1996.

“It took long enough, 30 years since another Black American man was in the finals,” Washington said. “It was me in 1996 Wimbledon, and I never thought it would take that long for another Black man to reach that level. I think it shows just how difficult it is to get to a final and to win a major with all of the players that the Americans have.

“So when you shrink the pool of players and say not just American, but Black Americans, it's even that much harder for that to occur.”

For Washington, the emergence of Shelton and Tiafoe represents more than two prominent American players competing at the top of the sport. Their presence on Tour also provides representation for young players who may see a pathway for themselves in professional tennis.

“When you have more representation out there, it inspires other players,” Washington said. “There is something about having a representative out there on the Tour, someone you're pulling for, that you can relate to, and that's inspirational for so many young people.”

Shelton's progress since that camp in Jacksonville has made the footage particularly relevant this week. Washington remembers seeing a talented teenager among around 50 youngsters, but there was no way of knowing then whether Shelton would go on to play college tennis, turn professional or compete for Grand Slam titles.

“At that time, you have no idea that the guy is going to become a Top-10 player,” Washington said. “You don't know if any of them are going to play college tennis. You don't know if they're going to play pro tennis. And you definitely don't know if they're ever going to be a Grand Slam finalist. But lo and behold, he's all of that.”

Washington can draw on his own experience as Shelton prepares for the biggest match of his career. In his 1996 Wimbledon semi-final, Washington trailed Todd Martin 5-1 in the fifth set before fighting back to reach his first and only Grand Slam final.

“I think to get to a final, you're going to have to have some good fortune,” Washington said. “For me, in the semi-final at Wimbledon, I was trailing 5-1 in the fifth set. How in the world I came back from that, I don't know. But you're going to have to have some good fortune. Obviously, you're also going to have to play really good tennis, which Ben is doing right now.”

Washington also remembers the significance of stepping onto court for a Grand Slam final and the impact that one match can have on a player's career.

“The thing I remember most about my Wimbledon final was knowing the significance of the moment and knowing that it's a life changer,” Washington said. “It changes your life.”

Shelton now has the opportunity to claim his first Grand Slam title, with reigning Roland Garros champion Zverev standing between him and the trophy. Washington believes Shelton has the level to make another major final, rather than viewing Sunday's match as a singular opportunity.

“I was not a player who was getting to the finals of majors every year, but I think Ben has the ability to reach the finals of multiple majors,” Washington said of Shelton, who is up to No. 4 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings. “I think he's that good.”

Washington's experience also gives him an appreciation for the challenge Shelton faces beyond simply reaching the final. Shelton has already shown his ability to handle the pressure in New York, defeating Tiafoe in the semi-finals and Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals to earn his place in Sunday's championship match.

“But there's a lot of guys, they're one and done,” Washington said. “So can he take the gravity of the moment, realise it, embrace it, but then go out and say, ‘Can I execute my game plan?’”

For now, Shelton is one win away from achieving what Washington came close to three decades ago, and from potentially becoming the first Black man to win a Grand Slam singles title since Ashe at Wimbledon in 1975. The old video from Jacksonville offers a reminder of how long that journey has been, and how unlikely it would have been to predict, in 2017, that the teenager on the practice court would one day occupy the same place in tennis history as the man alongside him on the court.

“This is what you dream of,” Washington said. “This is literally what you dream of when you're a kid. You dream of being in the finals of the US Open.”