The 2024 Indian Wells is getting more exciting by the day. The 2024 Australian Open and Rotterdam Open winner Jannik Sinner has not dropped a single set in the tournament so far. And he is up against American hopeful Ben Shelton in the Round of 16 at Indian Wells.
Jannik Sinner could break American hearts for 2 years in a row. It is because the Italian beat Taylor Fritz at the Indian Wells 2023. Fritz, who won the 2022 edition, was designated to win the home tournament, despite some heavy names on the roster. However, a young and vibrant Sinner had other plans.
It was the quarter-finals of the 2023 Indian Wells. Sinner had defeated veteran player Stan Wawrinka 6-1, 6-4 in the fourth round, and Fritz had defeated Marton Fucsovics 6-4, 6-3. The Italian tennis star wasn’t yet quite the superstar he is now, and a lot of hopes were on Fritz to win the match, and thereby the tournament.
Sinner set the tone from the very first point. The quality with which he maneuvered the ball and made Fritz cover maximum ground was the mark of a great player. He won the first set 6-4. The second set reached 2-2 at one point. Both players were playing well, and just then a few unforced errors by Sinner gave Fritz the advantage. The American player fully capitalized on it, and never let the advantage slip away. With a quality comeback, Fritz won the second set 6-4, and the game was evenly poised. His title defense was still alive.
The last set was the most intense of all. Both players were going toe-to-toe when Sinner decided to pull the accelerator. His speed, power, and tremendous backhand pushed Fritz on the back foot. The defending champion tried to fight back, but Sinner was too good for him. Sinner won the set 6-4 and therefore knocked Fritz out of the 2023 Indian Wells. The overall score for Sinner was 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.
Fritz’s title defense was over for 2023. But Sinner didn’t last long after his quarter-final win. He soon lost to Carlos Alcaraz in the semi-final by 7-6 (7-4), 6-3. Alcaraz went on to win the Indian Wells 2023 by beating Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 6-2 in the final.
Does Ben Shelton have a better chance than Taylor Fritz to beat Jannik Sinner?
After his semi-final finish last time around, Jannik Sinner has already reached the fourth round of the Indian Wells 2023 this year. He will play against Ben Shelton in the Round of 16 and Shelton could face a similar fate like Fritz did last year. On head to head, Jannik Sinner and Ben Shelton are level 1-1 after two matches they played each other in 2023.
Jannik Sinner and Ben Shelton will be playing on the outdoor hard courts of the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Although the match timings are not out yet, they are scheduled to play in the evening session of Tuesday, March 12.
Ben Shelton, with his big booming serves, could be a handful for Jannik Sinner, making it perhaps the first biggest test for the in-form Italian. However, Sinner has been unbeaten in the last 17 matches on the ATP Tour. Interestingly though, one of his two defeats since the US Open 2023 apart from Novak Djokovic, came against Ben Shelton, which was at the Shanghai Masters 2023.
Shelton loves taking on the big names and with home support, he could do better than Fritz did last year surely.
