Ben Shelton can never fail to impress, can he? The American sensation has been widely followed in the tennis circuit ever since his semifinal appearance at the US Open two years back. Since then, he has also reached the last four at the Australian Open, along with fourth-round appearances at the French Open and the Wimbledon Championships. While he has been solid on the court, Shelton has been as soft off the court. Ahead of his match today, the 22-year-old star was involved in a sweet gesture towards a young fan.

Shelton is currently in Stuttgart, where he is playing in the Boss Open. The American is into the semifinal after a simple, straight-set win over Jiri Lehecka in the last eight, 6-4, 6-4. Shelton was full of smiles, even before the match started, and carried that energy while posing for a photo.

Before the match, the players and the chair umpire approached the net for the toss. A young girl accompanied them for the toss, and subsequently, Shelton and Lehecka posed for a photo with the young fan. However, it wasn’t the only surprise of the day for the girl. After the photo, Shelton offered a fist pump to the girl, and she was left visibly stunned by Shelton’s gesture. She took a moment to compute what was happening before giving a little fist pump to Shelton while wishing him luck for his match.

Not to mention the young fan had a smile wide enough to rival even Shelton’s! The moment did numbers on social media, garnering thousands of likes, while Shelton won several fans’ hearts with his kind gesture.

Meanwhile, this isn’t the first time in the recent past that Shelton has won the hearts of young fans. At the Dallas Open earlier this year, the American sensation stopped by after a practice session to take selfies with young fans. “I was so excited. I am so in disbelief. He’s me and my brother’s favorite player,” a young fan, as he took a selfie with Shelton.

Amid this, American tennis has been on the rise, with many young stars emerging. Ahead of the Wimbledon Championships, Shelton explained the state of the sport back home.

Ben Shelton explains why American tennis is on the rise

Talking about the ATP rankings, there are as many as 4 American stars inside the top 15. Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Frances Tiafoe, and Ben Shelton are among them as they continue their rise on the ATP Tour. With a plethora of talent on display, the American sensation, Shelton, explained why American tennis was getting back to its glory days.

He said, “I guess we all emerged at the same time, and when one achieved a good result, the others knew they could too. That’s what has brought us to where we are today and perhaps has also motivated the next generation.”

He added onto those words in an interview with Tennis.com where he said, “It’s been a long time coming. We have so much talent, so many great players who can shine on the big stage.”

Though the American contingent made a breakthrough in Paris, Shelton has already set his sights ahead. “Everything happened at once in Paris. I know we hope to go even further in the Grand Slams: the round of 16, the quarterfinals, the semifinals—we want to win,” he added.

“I’m excited about American tennis. We’re in an excellent position. There’s a lot of hype around American tennis and I love being a part of it.”

After cruising through to the semifinals, Shelton will now face the local star and top seed, Alexander Zverev, in the semifinals. Although it would be a tough matchup for Shelton, the American sensation can thrive on grass courts and will give a firm challenge to Zverev. Their match is scheduled to take place tomorrow on the Center Court.