Ben Shelton and Taylor Fritz will collide in the Canadian Open semi-finals, and it’s set to mark something that hasn’t been seen since 2010.
The two Americans have been in fine form over the summer, with Shelton having a genuine chance to usurp Novak Djokovic in the ATP Tour rankings.
Shelton has defeated Adrian Mannarino, Brandon Nakashima, Flavio Cobolli, and Alex De Minaur to reach his first career ATP 1000 semi-final.
Fritz, meanwhile, has toppled Roberto Carballés Baena, Gabriel Diallo, Jiri Lehecka, and Andrey Rublev to reach the final four.
The two men’s meeting in the Canadian Open semi-final marks a surprising feat that hasn’t been achieved since 2010.
Taylor Fritz vs Ben Shelton is the first ATP 1000 all-American semi-final since 2010
Americans have failed to dominate the ATP Tour since the early 2000s, as evidenced by Fritz and Shelton becoming the first all-American semi-finalists since 2010.
The American game is currently going through a resurgence, with the likes of Fritz, Shelton, Tommy Paul, Frances Tiafoe, and Sebastian Korda.
Fritz vs Shelton will mark the first all-American final at an ATP 1000 event since Andy Roddick collided with Mardy Fish at the Cincinnati Open semi-finals in 2010.
Fish won the all-American clash, but he fell to Roger Federer in the final, who picked up his second title of the year.
The winner of Shelton vs Fritz at the Canadian Open will play either Alexander Zverev or Karen Khachanov in the final.
What Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton have said about playing each other
Fritz and Shelton have only played each other on one occasion on the ATP Tour and that came all the way back in 2023.
Fritz won that bout, and he’s excited to challenge himself against an in-form Shelton at the Canadian Open.
“It’s kind of funny, we’ve been kind of in the same draw bracket several times,” Fritz said in his press conference in Toronto.
“Every single time one of us just loses before we meet each other,” continued Fritz, who will finally get to play Shelton.
Shelton, meanwhile, is ‘really excited’ to lock horns with Fritz in the semi-final. Shelton shared: “He’s a big-match player,” added the World No. 7.
The Wimbledon quarter-finalist continued: “He’s been carrying the flag for the United States in the big tournaments as of late.”
Shelton and Fritz are set to play the second semi-final in Toronto on August 7.