Is Shelton in Danger?

A lot of tight matches and a few unexpected losses...

Right now, the scorelines in Shelton's matches are kind of looking like the real servebots' matches. I'm talking about Opelka/Isner kind of matches where you had to win in tiebreaks and a lot of deciding sets... yes, Shelton is really struggling on return! While one of his biggest strengths is the clutchness and mental strength to win most of these matches, that has not always been the case for the last few months. This worries me a bit, especially if we see Ben's confidence take a hit... like I said, it's a big part of his game and success. In his defense, he got to face three aggressive lefties in Washington, and lost to a big-hitting Virtanen (who thrives on grass) at Wimbledon before that.

Brooksby managed a straight-sets win against Walton yesterday, but it was at least slightly more competitive than the scoreline indicates. Jenson was the more clutch player and also slightly lucky with a let call (replaying the point) when he was in trouble on his own serve. Walton got really frustrated by this (and his issue of converting chances), which led to him starting to hit the ball a bit more angrily, which plays right into Jenson's hands! Brooksby tends to be at his best when there is chaos on the court... whether it's through disrupting conditions or his opponent struggling in some kind of way. While it was a good win, I'm still not seeing Brooksby at his best level yet.

As for the matchup, I do think Shelton will enjoy not having to face a big server who plays aggressively. Also, not having to face a lefty is probably not a bad thing. Still, we know that Brooksby is a tricky player to face, with a high tennis IQ. He is an above-average returner, and I find him quite good against players who like to come to the net; his lobs and passing shots are great...