NEW YORK :Sixth seed Ben Shelton retired from his U.S. Open third-round meeting with Frenchman Adrian Mannarino on Friday before 17th seed Frances Tiafoe was also knocked out in a massive blow to American hopes of ending their 22-year wait for a men’s Grand Slam champion.
Shelton grabbed his left shoulder and winced in pain after hitting a forehand early in the fourth set in a tight clash on Louis Armstrong Stadium and pinched at the spot as he prepared to receive a serve from Mannarino in the second game.
“I just did something to my shoulder I don’t know what it is. I’m in a lot of pain,” Shelton said to his father and coach, Bryan Shelton, before taking a medical timeout midway through the second game in the fourth set.
Shelton later added to his father that it was the “worst pain” he had felt in his life, before meeting with the physio again, but found himself on an even footing with left-hander Mannarino who produced some moments of magic.
Shelton, tipped as a possible contender to become the first American man to prevail at Flushing Meadows since Andy Roddick’s 2003 triumph, looked dejected at the break and shed tears into his towel before he pulled out to gasps from the home crowd.
“When he started having pain, he was leading in the match,” said Mannarino, who rallied from a set down to draw level at 3-6 6-3 4-6 6-4 when the match was abandoned.
“He probably would have won. It’s unfortunate for him and very lucky for me. I don’t really know what to say right now. I suppose I’m happy to get through. I wish him the best.”
“I was having good fun on the court there were some long rallies. I lost some of them, won some of them. It was fun to play. Ben’s such an amazing player, it was a great match.
“I was enjoying my time on court, even if I was losing.”
American fans were left to swallow another bitter pill around an hour later when Tiafoe, who last failed to reach the Flushing Meadows fourth round in 2019, crashed to a 6-4 6-3 7-6(7) defeat by Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff on Grandstand.
Struff regained his composure after a flurry of double faults towards the end of the contest to send out last year’s semi-finalist.
“I think everybody knows sometimes it’s tough to serve out the match,” Struff said.
“I tried to stay calm and tried to refocus and I managed to get some energy back so I was very happy about that.”
The result left Taylor Fritz as the main hope of the home nation at the year’s final Grand Slam. The fourth seed who was runner-up last year will take on Jerome Kym later on Friday.
