Are you ready for some fireworks in Paris? America’s Ben Shelton takes on Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime in the third round of the 2024 French Open on Friday (May 31). Although clay courts don’t exactly suit their style of play, Ben Shelton won his only title of the season so far on the clay courts of Houston. Even Felix Auger-Aliassime made his only final appearance this year at the Madrid Open. So, fans are expecting to witness a nail-biting contest between two of the most promising stars in the tennis world.

Shelton will enter this match after witnessing an abrupt ending to his second-round clash against Japan’s Kei Nishikori. The Japanese tennis star returned to the Grand Slam after almost three years, but his journey was cut short due to a sore right shoulder. He retired from his previous match against Shelton after playing almost two sets in the match. On the other hand, Auger-Aliassime had to go through a marathon four-setter to defeat Germany’s Henri Squire in his second-round match.

Ben Shelton vs Felix Auger-Aliassime: Preview

Apart from winning the title in Houston, Ben Shelton has reached two SFs and one QF in his previous tournaments this year. In the French Open, he started his campaign with a victory against the local lad, Hugo Gaston. Shelton defeated Gaston by 3-6,6-3,6-4,6-4 in the first-round match. He hammered eight aces and committed four double faults in the entire match. His first serve win percentage was 70% but it dropped to 61% on the second serve. Shelton converted six out of his fourteen breakpoints against the Frenchman.

Even in the next match against Nishikori, Ben Shelton hit quite a few aces (9) during that short span of the match. He even fired a 227 km/hr serve against the Japanese. ‘Big Ben’ loves to hit big serves and he has hit a total of 219 aces this season and committed 100 double faults. He has in fact won 87% of his service games and 16% of his return games so far this year.

His opponent, Felix Auger-Aliassime, reached one SF and one QF before making his stellar run at the Spanish capital earlier this month. In his first match in Paris, the Canadian beat Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka by 6-2,6-4,6-4. After that, he defeated Squire by 6-4,4-6,6-3,6-2 and in that match, Auger-Aliassime hit a staggering twelve aces and committed just four double faults. He won 79% of his first serve and 57% of his second serve against the German. However, he could only manage to convert seven out of his eleven breakpoints in that second-round match.

Just like the American, even Felix Auger-Aliassime has hammered quite a few aces (207) this season. He has committed 117 double faults this season as of now but has won 83% of his service games and 21% of his return games. 

Shelton vs Auger-Aliassime: Head-to-Head

Ben Shelton hasn’t yet faced Felix Auger-Aliassime in his career. So, this will be their first meeting and the stage couldn’t have been much better to kick-start their rivalry. Rain has played spoilsport on multiple occasions during the tournament. If rain God comes in favor, then we’re surely going to see yet another blockbuster contest in the 2024 French Open. But who is currently having the edge in this match? Is it the left-handed Ben Shelton or is it the right-handed Felix Auger-Aliassime?

Prediction: Ben Shelton to win this match in five sets

This match can most likely go very deep and fans may have to wait for a fair bit of time to know the winner from this thrilling contest. Both Ben Shelton and Felix Auger-Aliassime are in good form at the moment and they would definitely be looking forward to capitalizing on that. Shelton currently has a win-loss record of 17-12 this season while it’s 18-12 for the Canadian.

Both these players have a similar powerful playing style. Shelton’s biggest weapon is his fiery serves. But he’s equally powerful and consistent with his forehand and backhand. While Felix Auger-Aliassime also possesses a strong serve and can move well around the court. Shelton is currently ranked 15 in the world while Auger-Aliassime is ranked 21. It’s very difficult to pick a winner from this close contest but Ben Shelton has improved a lot with his game on the clay courts. So, looking at their overall stats and current form, ‘Big Ben’ looks mostly like to have the edge over ‘FA2’ in this match.