A former college tennis player has not won a major singles title since 1984. All in all, there’s been 330 grand slam tournaments including both the men’s and women’s draws.
That could change this year with former Florida Gator, 8-seed Ben Shelton making waves at the US Open, taking down seven-time grand slam champion 2-seed Carlos Alcaraz to reach the semifinals.
It will be an all-American matchup with Shelton and 11-seed Francis Tiafoe facing off Friday night for a spot in the US Open final. An American has not won a grand slam title since Andy Roddick won the US Open in 2003, so disregarding the college tennis agenda, this weekend will be massive for American tennis.
On the call will be the last former college tennis player to win a grand slam, John McEnroe, who won the US Open in 1984. McEnroe claimed the 1978 singles title and led Stanford to a team NCAA championship his freshman year and never looked back, turning pro and winning three-straight US Open titles from 1979-1981. He would finish his pro career with seven major victories.
Shelton played for the Florida Gators from 2020 to 2022, amassing a treasure trove of accolades before turning pro after his sophomore season.
2021 SEC Champion
2021 NCAA Champion
2021 ITA All American Champion
2022 SEC Champion
2022 NCAA Singles Champion
2022 SEC Player of the Year
2022 NCAA Player of the Year
A handful of former collegiate players have reached major semifinals in recent years. Former Wolfpacker Diana Shnaider did so at the French Open this year. Former Cavalier Emma Navarro reached the US Open semis in 2024. Shelton did previously in 2023. None reached the final.
But this time could be different. Shelton is coming off a thriller versus Alcaraz that stretched until 3:33 a.m. His powerful serve proved to be the deciding factor. Maybe, Shelton is primed for a let down match after the biggest win of his career. We saw that with Shnaider at the French Open after she took down World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the quarterfinals. Shnaider fell to then-World No. 113 Maja Chwalinska in disappointing fashion after her big breakthrough.
It doesn’t feel like we’re primed for a let-down, though. The energy is only ramping up as we should see an even more engaged crowd for the Shelton-Tiafoe match, knowing we will get an American in the final.
The winner Friday night will likely face No. 1 Alexander Zverev in the final, another titan that would force Shelton to dig his deepest. Still, he has already proven at this tournament how deep he can go.
