“He has a couple of things that you can’t teach,” Arias said. “Number one, he’s got the long game in his mind. So he recognizes that he needs to be able to win when he’s not serving great. He also understands he’s not going to grind you to death. He’s going to beat you with some spectacular shots, and he’s okay missing a few. And that’s probably the right way for him to play.”
And then there’s that other thing that can’t be taught, the sense of belonging among the elites. Arias was impressed by how Shelton, in making his first major semifinal, looked utterly at-home and comfortable. It was similar to the attitude of Fritz.
“He didn’t go on to the court with any sense of, ‘I shouldn’t be here. How did I get here?’ Arias said. “He goes on the court with, ‘I’m playing Sinner in the semis, but I think I can win. I’ll be upset if I don’t win.’”
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Annacone sees another point of commonality between Fritz and Shelton. Although each of them has been dogged in the pursuit of excellence, both are animated by a deep love of and passion for the game.
“You can see how much Ben enjoys the game,” the coach said. “I just love to see young guys like that, who love to compete and aren’t afraid of the consequences of winning or losing. They kind of embrace the fact that, you know, stuff happens. ‘Yeah, I’m going to lose sometimes and win sometimes. I’m going to leave it all on the court, and I’m going to try to enjoy doing that.’ It’s easy to say that, but it’s hard to actually live it.”
Perhaps not so very hard, at least not for Ben Shelton.
