Alexander Bublik and Ben Shelton Friendship: How it all began

Alexander Bublik and Ben Shelton seem to be everywhere on social media. At first, the duo went viral for their hilarious on-court antics during the doubles event at the Canadian Open 2024. Later, the two garnered attention with their reaction to the final point from their first-round encounter during the singles event.

Shelton and Bublik indulged in an intense battle during the first set (7-6). However, the second set was far from being as competitive. But despite Bublik losing 2-6, he managed to produce some entertaining points. One such rally came at the final point of the duel.

Up 5-2, 40-0 in the second set, the American caught his opponent by surprise with a smooth drop shot. Bublik failed to reach the ball. Hence, he decided to forfeit the point by throwing his racket underneath. As stunning as the return seemed, the World No.25 lost the point. But his interaction with Shelton displayed his strong bond with the latter.

The best shot that never counted

Another look at @BublikAlexander‘s moment of magic at #OBN24! pic.twitter.com/4z1p8QyjBA

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) August 7, 2024

As the clip went viral on social media, tennis enthusiasts wondered how this unlikely pair became two of the closest friends on the tour.

The 27 and 21-year-olds faced each other on two occasions – the Italian Open 2023 & the Madrid Open 2024 – before finally deciding to team up for the doubles event in the Italian Open 2024. During the ATP Masters 1000, the two were seen enjoying each other’s company on the court, constantly laughing.

Unfortunately, the two weren’t able to replicate the same success during the ongoing Canadian Open 2024. The Kazakh-American duo suffered a straight sets loss against Jannik Sinner and Jack Draper in the second round at Montreal.

While Bublik’s journey at the ATP Masters 1000 got over earlier than he’d expected it to be, he would be cheering on for his friend as Shelton hopes to make a deep run this week.

Can Ben Shelton’s consistent improvement help him in the US Open series?

Ben Shelton skipped the 2024 Olympics to focus entirely on the US Open series. Following his first-round win, Shelton revealed that this decision seemed to be a great one as he was consistently improving his game.

“I think the consistency in my tennis is improving every week. I’m feeling more and more comfortable. I’m starting to feel more comfortable on the court against guys that I’ve had a lot of trouble with before. I think that my game is evolving every day. Surely not the player that I want to be in the future, but I think I’m moving the right way with a lot of things and finding identity on court,” Shelton said.

Shelton next plays Australia’s Alexie Popyrin in the second round of the Canadian Open 2024. He would like to record a convincing win that sets the tone for what might be a potentially deep run in the tournament.