At 3:33 a.m., Ben Shelton punctuated the biggest victory of his career with one final ace. By daylight, he had a message for the champion he knocked out of the US Open.
Shelton shared a five-photo carousel on Instagram on Wednesday, opening with an image of his phone-call celebration and following it with a photograph of Carlos Alcaraz putting an arm around him at the net.
“BELIEVE,” Shelton wrote before addressing Alcaraz directly. “What a match… you’re an animal and sports icon. 🌵 Tennis needs you.”
The compact message captured the respect left behind by a quarterfinal that had nearly everything: thunderous serving, wild momentum swings, physical distress and the latest finish in US Open history.
Shelton defeated Alcaraz 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (10-7) in four hours, 28 minutes. He closed the match with consecutive aces, the last reportedly registering at 146 mph, to reach his second US Open semifinal.
First American to Beat Carlos Alcaraz
The result snapped Alcaraz’s 18-match winning streak and handed the world No. 3 his first loss to an American after 13 consecutive victories. Alcaraz had also been 14-0 against left-handed opponents and had won 12 straight five-set matches.
For Shelton, the breakthrough carried equal weight. He entered the match with a 0-17 career record against players ranked inside the top three and had lost all three previous meetings with Alcaraz.
Those numbers became irrelevant once Shelton recovered from dropping a 70-minute opening set.
The 23-year-old responded by winning nine consecutive games and building a two-sets-to-one advantage. Alcaraz forced a fifth set, but Shelton stayed composed through the deciding 10-point tiebreak, using his serve to escape the final pressure points.
“I’m tired,” Shelton told reporters afterward. “That was a war, an epic match.”
It was Shelton’s first victory over Alcaraz and the first by an American against the Spaniard at a major. The win also reinforced why Shelton has emerged as the leading candidate to end the country’s long wait for another men’s Grand Slam champion.
Alcaraz Returns Shelton’s Respect
Alcaraz responded with his own gracious message after the defeat.
“What a battle Ben! ❤️ You deserve the win, I wish you the best for the rest of the tournament! 🙌🏻 I leave here happy with my level after such a long injury,” Alcaraz wrote. “Thank you for the energy NYC! ⚡️ Always a very special place! 🇺🇸”
The seven-time major champion was returning from a lengthy wrist injury and said he left New York encouraged by his health and competitive level. He also called Shelton an “unbelievable player” who handled the match’s defining moments with maturity.
Shelton will next face Frances Tiafoe in an all-American semifinal. He owns a 3-1 record against Tiafoe, including a four-set victory in the 2023 US Open quarterfinals.
Their meeting guarantees that an American man will play in Sunday’s final for the first time since Andy Roddick in 2006. No American man has won the tournament since Roddick lifted the trophy in 2003.
The semifinal also carries deeper historical significance. With two Black Americans contesting a place in the championship match, the winner will become the first Black American man to reach the US Open final since Arthur Ashe in 1972.
A victory on Sunday would produce another landmark: the first Black American man to win the title since Ashe became the inaugural US Open men’s champion in 1968.
Shelton’s Instagram post began with one emphatic word: “BELIEVE.”
After what happened before sunrise inside the stadium bearing Ashe’s name, the message no longer sounded aspirational.
Ben Shelton Sends Carlos Alcaraz Classy Message After US Open Thriller