Ben Shelton Has Big Dreams, How Far Can He Go?

Ben Shelton, currently ranked eighty-nine, is making significant noise at the Australian Open. This is the furthest he has gone in any major. At twenty-years-old, this is a great accomplishment for the youngster, who turned professional last year. The American defeated crowd favorite, Alexei Popyrin, 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-4.

American J.J. Wolf is also making noise down under. Wolf defeated fellow countryman, Michael Mmoh, 6-4, 6-1, 6-2. It’s a pity that Wolf and Ben Shelton will play each other in the next round. However, that is a luck of the draw. Both guys are feeling confident; therefore, expect a fiercely contested battle. Unfortunately for Jenson Brooksby, he had to play fellow American, [35] Tommy Paul. Paul won 6-1, 6-4, 6-3.

Seeds Are Expected To Fall At This Stage

This was a surprise, Magda Linette defeated [19] Ekaterina Alexandrova. Alexandrova has been a bit sporadic lately, somedays she can beat anyone, and somedays, everyone can beat her. Linette won 6-3, 6-4. [25] Daniel Evans lost to the fiery Russian, [5] Andrey Rublev. Rublev won 6-4, 6-2, 6-3. Next up for Rublev will be the feisty Dane, [9] Holger Rune. Hopefully Rune’s injury is not a factor in their match.

[26] Elise Mertens lost to former doubles partner, [5] Aryna Sabalenka. Sabalenka looks quite dangerous and easily won 6-2, 6-3. [27] Grigor Dimitrov put up some resistance in the first set against [4] Novak Djokovic. However, it was futile, Djokovic won 7-6(7), 6-3, 6-4. Djokovic will play crowd favorite, [22] Alex de Minaur. Surprisingly, this will be their first meeting. Will the crowd inspire de Minaur to elevate his game enough to defeat the Serbian?

Special Mention: Andy Murray’s Run Is Over

Andy Murray ran out of steam against [24] Roberto Bautista Agut. The Brit managed to steal the second set, but Bautista Agut elevated his game to win 6-1, 6-7(7), 6-3, 6-4. The Spaniard will play Paul in the fourth round.

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