CNN
—
Rising stars from the United States feature prominently in the men’s side of the draw at the Australian Open, making up three of the eight players ithat reached reached the quarterfinals in Melbourne.
According to the ATP, it’s the first time since 2000 – when Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Chris Woodruff reached the last eight – that three US players have made the Australian Open’s quarterfinals.
The most surprising – and certainly least known – name of the three is 20-year-old Ben Shelton, who before traveling to New Zealand and Australia in preparation for the first grand slam of the year had never even been outside of the US.
A big-hitting lefty, Shelton is playing in only his second major, with his first grand slam appearance coming at the US Open at the end of 2022.
The 20-year-old currently boasts a career-high ranking – world No. 89…
