What Is the Red Mark on Ben Shelton’s Arm During Wimbledon Against Jannik Sinner? Does He Have a Health Condition?

Ben Shelton is bringing the glory back to US tennis at Wimbledon! Now in his first-ever quarterfinal at SW19, the 22-year-old faces a huge test. He’s up against World No.1 Jannik Sinner, who’s made this tournament his playground—semifinals in 2023 and quarterfinals in 2022, 2023, and 2024. But Shelton isn’t far behind this year. He powered through tough opponents, winning his first three matches in straight sets, only dropping a set in the fourth round against Lorenzo Sonego. Stats aside, there’s something extra intriguing about Ben on Court 1.

Right now, the match is in its opening set, with both players leaving it all on the line for a shot at the next round. Jannik sports a sleeve over his right arm, nursing an elbow injury from his battle with Grigor Dimitrov in the R16. Meanwhile, Ben’s upper arm features a few mysterious circles. What are they?

Those marks first appeared in his previous round against Sonego. BBC commentator Clare Balding cleared up the mystery, saying, “Those marks, by the way, on his shoulder, those are not tattoos, that’s from cupping, it’s bit like what the swimmers do and it really pulls the blood to surface.” So, what’s the benefit?

Cupping therapy involves sticking cups onto your skin for a few minutes to create a vacuum. The idea is to shift blood flow to or from specific spots, helping to ease pain and reduce inflammation. It’s a popular recovery trick across many sports, not just one.

Could this be Shelton’s secret weapon to break into his first Wimbledon semifinal? Only time will tell! For now, keep up with all the action and drama from the Championships on our Live Blog!