Ben Shelton, Arthur Fils reach semi finals in Auckland

Ben Shelton reached the semi-finals of an ATP tour for the first time since his he won his maiden tour-level title in Tokyo late last season after victory over Roberto Carballes at the ASB Classic on Thursday.

The 21-year-old top-seeded American, who also reached the semis at the 2023 US Open moved past his opponent 6-4, 6-3 in the pair’s first head to head meeting to reach the last four in Auckland.

Shelton advanced to 10-0 against players outside the Top 50 following his August loss to Shang Juncheng in Washington after defeating the World No. 67 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

If Ben Shelton wins, he will stay at No. 16 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings and will be the top-ranked American no matter what happens to him the rest of the week.

In an attempt to capture his second ATP tour title, he scheduled a semi-final matchup with Taro Daniel of Japan.

After defeating qualifier Alexandre Muller 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-3 to start play on Thursday, Daniel secured his spot in the semi-finals against Shelton. Muller’s impressive comeback in the second set pushed the Japanese World No. 74 into a decisive set.

Daniel advanced to his fourth ATP Tour semifinal and his first since Belgrade in 2021 thanks to a dramatic three-game run from 2-2 in the decider.

With his opponent, second seed Cameron Norrie, had to withdraw with a left wrist injury, Tabilo advanced to the quarterfinals by walkover. Daniel Altmaier lost the day’s last match to Fils 7-6(2), 1-0, when the German retired due to a lower back problem.

Since Rafael Nadal, who was 17 years old in 2004, the 19-year-old Frenchman Fils is the only adolescent to go to the Auckland semifinals. This Friday match will be Tabilo’s third semi-final on the ATP Tour and his first since Santiago in 2022.