With Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz both having lost large parts of the season to injuries, there’s a question fans have been debating for months now, and Ben Shelton did not agree with the premise. The American is playing the ATP 500 event in Basel as the top seed, and in the pre-tournament press conference, he pushed back on the reporter’s question of whether the reduced “Sincaraz” presence gives the next generation more hope of winning on tour. 

“I mean, they won two of the four slams this year,” he said in the press conference. “Sinner won five Masters 1000s. I don’t know that their dominance has faded.”

“I think they’ll probably both be very happy or very healthy when it comes to the Australian Open next year. It’s been sad for tennis and the time that they haven’t been able to play this year,” Shelton added.  

The numbers back him up. Alcaraz completed his career Grand Slam in January at the Australian Open, but was then sidelined from the tour in April due to a wrist injury for four months, missing the French Open and Wimbledon in the process. Sinner, meanwhile, won five straight Masters 1000 titles at Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo, Madrid and Rome, extending his record winning streak at that level to 34 matches. He then claimed his fifth Grand Slam title at Wimbledon, successfully defending the crown. 

That was his final game of the season, and he was forced to end the year early due to a knee injury – he finished 2026 with a 44-3 record and six titles. But he will play an exhibition event right at the tail end of the year, Six Slam Kings, running from December 27-30.

The pair met only once all year, in the Monte-Carlo final, which Sinner won 7-6(5), 6-3. In other words, in the events they did play, they won almost everything. Between the start of 2024 and the start of this year, they had won nine straight Grand Slam titles. 

Shelton is at his career-best ranking of world No. 4, on the result of reaching the US Open final. Although, he was candid about his 40-17 season, calling it a roller coaster, “not to the standard that I want.”

He even pointed to first- and second-round losses at two Slams and a string of early exits at Masters 1000 events, but he said there were many weeks where he played well, which is why he has won titles this year, including at Dallas indoors and on clay in Munich. Looking ahead to 2027, he said there is “so much room for improvement.”

Ben Shelton rebuilding his form on a suitable surface in Basel

Ben Shelton’s form since the US Open has been a source of concern. After reaching the final in New York, he has skipped events and produced underwhelming performances at the Davis Cup and then in Shanghai. His most recent loss came in the third-round at the Shanghai Masters to Frenchman Arthur Gea, 7-6(5), 7-6(3), on October 11. 

In Basel, he said the tournament surface suits him, and that he loves the atmosphere, calling it one of the best 500 events. His indoor record this season is 5-2, and overall he possesses a 54.5 win percentage on the surface. 

His first test is Aleksandar Kovacevic, a lucky loser ranked No. 84, in the first round on Tuesday. It will be their first meeting on the ATP Tour, but the two have played five times on the Challenger circuit, all in 2022, with Shelton leading 3-2.

Shelton was originally scheduled to play former world No. 2 Casper Ruud in the round of 32. However, Alexander Bublik withdrew end moment due to a knee injury which reshuffled the bracket and the Norwegian moved into a seeded position, where he faced Swiss wild card Dominic Stricker instead and the American drew against Kovacevic. 

Novak Djokovic is in the same half of the draw as Shelton, and it is also a farewell tournament for Stan Wawrinka, who opens against Jiri Lehecka as he plays his final event on the ATP Tour. The week is an opportunity for Shelton to turn things around after a disappointing fall.