It is not looking good for Ben Shelton at the moment. Shortly after his exit from the US Open due to a shoulder injury, the American sensation had hoped to make a brisk comeback on the court. He was even named in the United States’ Davis Cup squad for the qualifying round after the US Open. While his comeback remains doubtful, there is further bad news for his fans.

In a major setback, Shelton will miss the Laver Cup scheduled in San Francisco later this month. It looks like Shelton hasn’t recovered from his shoulder injury completely and will take the time off to focus on other tournaments. It is a big blow to Team World, as Shelton was a mainstay of their team and played in a majority of the matches.

However, Shelton isn’t the only one who has pulled out of the event. Even his compatriot Tommy Paul withdrew due to an injury, and the duo will be replaced by Alex Michelsen and Reilly Opelka. Nonetheless, Team World is strong, and they will join Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Joao Fonseca, and Francisco Cerundolo. Andre Agassi will captain this team, which is looking to avenge their defeat to Team Europe last year.

Shelton made his Laver Cup debut two years ago and won his first match there against Arthur Fils. It set the stage for him, and slowly and steadily, he became one of the most important members of his team. While Team World was banking on him against the likes of Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev, Shelton’s absence could haunt Team World big time.

Meanwhile, Shelton has faced some harsh scrutiny after withdrawing from the US Open. Although trying everything that he could, Shelton couldn’t continue in his match against Mannarino and eventually decided to withdraw midway after the fourth set.

Ben Shelton left heartbroken following US Open exit

In what was a see-saw battle between Shelton and Mannarino, the former’s untimely injury made life difficult. Nonetheless, Shelton played through pain for some time before he felt that enough was enough and eventually decided to retire from the match. During the post-match interview, Shelton opened up about his injury.

He said, “I felt a very sharp pain. I’m not sure what happened. I had never retired in a match before, as I’m not that type of player. I can not tell you when the pain started, but I believe I did not enter the match injured. I always try to stay on the court and overcome injury or illness. However, this time it was much harder. Everything is uncertain now; I can not tell you anything else. Adrian is a great player.”

With Shelton’s withdrawal, the local hopes suffered a major blow. Even the likes of Coco Gauff and Taylor Fritz have exited the tournament, further slimming the chances for a local champion to emerge. It remains to be seen if Shelton can come back strong after his injury.