NEW YORK/STARNBERG, August 27, 2024

Ben Shelton is off to a strong start at this year’s US Open. The 21-year-old from the United States, who reached the semi-finals in New York a year ago, secured a convincing 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 first-round victory over former champion Dominic Thiem.

Shelton, who made headlines last year as the youngest US-American man to reach the US Open semi-finals since Michael Chang in 1992, appeared at ease on his return to Flushing Meadows. The World No. 13 dominated the match against Thiem at Arthur Ashe Stadium, improving his head-to-head series against the Austrian to 2-1.

Everyone remembers where they were on September 13, 2020.

Thanks for the memories, @domithiem 🏆 pic.twitter.com/Ix7ntLcg2g

— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 26, 2024

Wild card entry Thiem, competing at the US Open for the last time, is set to retire later this year. The 30-year-old, who won his first Grand Slam title at the 2020 US Open, had a 23-9 record at the tournament. Four years ago, he achieved the biggest victory of his career by coming back from two sets down to defeat Alexander Zverev in the final, which took place in an empty Arthur Ashe Stadium due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

On Monday, Thiem returned to a packed Ashe for what turned out to be his Grand Slam farewell, as the former World No. 3 plans to retire at the end of this season. After his three-set loss to Shelton, Thiem received a standing ovation from the crowd and was presented with a photo collage on court, marking the end of his memorable US Open journey.

“It has been 10 years since I first played here. It is actually a really important moment for me, because I had my greatest success here on this court,” Thiem said on court. “In that weird 2020, in strange and different circumstances. I had this success unfortunately without any of you [the fans] here. It was an amazing moment but on the other hand a bit sad, so I am super happy I got the chance to play my last US Open match on this court.”