LONDON — Just four points, three aces, and about a minute were all it took for Ben Shelton to secure a commanding 6-2, 7-5, 6-4 victory over Rinky Hijikata on Friday. This second-round clash at Wimbledon had paused the previous night due to darkness, leaving them at 5-4 in the third set.
“I wasn’t specifically aiming for four aces,” noted Shelton, the 10th seed.
Regardless, the two-time Grand Slam semifinalist exuded far more positivity than he did the night before, around 9:30 p.m., when he was frustrated by the decision to halt play just as he prepared to serve for victory on No. 2 Court. Without artificial lights, he had been informed that the electronic line-calling system was on the verge of shutting down.
Visibly animated, Shelton had someone intervene between him and the chair umpire, though he later remarked that such intervention was unwarranted.
“I guess when he saw a guy my size approaching the umpire quickly, he might have thought I was ready to lose my cool or something. I definitely wasn’t,” smiled Shelton. “I moved on fast… It probably looked more intense than it really was.”
The American, who made it to the semifinals at both the 2023 U.S. Open and this year’s Australian Open, returned to the court less than 16 hours later alongside Hijikata, ranked 87th from Australia. After a warmup that seemed far longer than the actual gameplay, Shelton unleashed a blistering 141 mph ace to kick off the match. He then followed with another ace at 140 mph and a third at 118 mph, wrapping up the match decisively.
“I’m thrilled with how I managed the situation and took care of business today,” Shelton shared, looking ahead to his next match against Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics, ranked 105th, for a shot at reaching the fourth round at the All England Club for the second year in a row. “It’s never easy, mentally, to wake up knowing you have to play a match day. I was focused and ready for 2 1/2 sets. You can’t just go out there thinking, ‘Yeah, I’ll just hold.’ What if you don’t?”
Just before play was halted Thursday, Shelton had three match points while leading 5-3, sitting at love-40 on Hijikata’s serve. Yet, Hijikata rallied, claiming the next five points to prolong their battle.
