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NEW YORK — A year ago, Ben Shelton started his U.S. Open on Court 10, in the quasi-hinterlands of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. To find it, walk over to the other side of the fountains, where a ball that flies over the back fence is basically gone forever.
First Monday a year later, he had a different assignment: opening up Arthur Ashe Stadium at high noon against Dominic Thiem, the 2020 champion and a player whom Shelton watched, jaw on the floor, through his teen years.
How much has Shelton’s life changed in a year?
“I just felt comfortable,” he said. “Used to it. Felt like I had been there before.”
He had indeed. The then-20-year-old played three matches in the biggest stadium in the sport last year, culminating in a semifinal duel with Novak Djokovic. That ended with the 24-time Grand Slam champion mocking Shelton’s hang-up-the-phone celebration, with Shelton staring Djokovic down during an icy handshake.
“After last year, the stage doesn’t get much bigger than that,” Shelton said.
Maybe. Or maybe it does.
For the first time since 1996, there are five men and five women from the U.S. in the top 20. Since none of the men is ranked higher than No. 12, it’s not exactly the glory years of…
