It’s not often that Ben Shelton comes out of a big-serve match as the loser, but 21-year-old Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard outdueled the former Florida tennis star on Sunday to claim the Swiss Indoors Basel championship, 6-4, 7-6(4).
“First of all, I wanna congratulate Gio on a great match today,” Shelton said after finishing as the runner-up. “So many parts of your game have improved, and you’re such a great young talent.”
Shelton joked that he nearly killed himself trying to return Mpethsi Perricard’s serve. The Frenchman averaged 140 mph on first serve and 129 mph on second serve, while Shelton averaged 120 mph on first serve. It’s rare to see Shelton out-powered, but the ATP rookie was on a mission to crack the top 35 — Mpetshi Perricard began the year outside the top 200.
Despite the loss, Shelton will move back into the top 20 thanks to the 300 points earned for making the final. He’ll move to No. 19 with a chance to improve in his final tournament of the year, the Paris Masters, a 1,000-point event.
Shelton’s draw is tough, though. He’ll face lucky loser Corentin Moutet in the Round of 64, following a withdrawal from current world No. 19 Felix Auger-Aliassime, and then a date with world No. 1 Jannik Sinner looms. Should Shelton advance to the Roud of 16, potential matchups include top-15-ranked Holger Rune and top-40-ranked Alexander Bublik.
No match time for Shelton’s Round of 64 battle has been set, but it should take place Monday evening.
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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Ben Shelton’s finishes as runner-up at Swiss Indoors
