On Monday, American 10th seed Ben Shelton defeated Italian Lorenzo Sonego 3-6 6-1 7-6 (1) 7-5, earning him the family bragging rights and advancing him to the Wimbledon quarter finals for the first time.

In the Wimbledon final 16 that proved to be the pinnacle of Shelton’s Grand Slam career, Bryan, Shelton’s father and current coach, lost to Christian Bergstrom 10-8 in the fifth set thirty-one years ago.

Shelton junior, who has advanced to the Australian and U.S. Opens semifinals before, was a touch ragged after losing his opening set of the competition. However, in a commanding second set, the strong left-hander recovered his length and attacked the net more, and he then dominated a tie-break in the third set.

After an incredible final game to break, the 22-year-old Shelton, who defeated Sonego in the Australian and French Opens this year, completed the hat-trick with a thunderous triumph.

Large red marks on the arm of Ben Shelton

Fans were distracted by the patches on the American’s physique as he wore his signature tank top during the match. Two huge red marks were clearly visible on Shelton’s left shoulder at the age of 22. One of the ways the No. 10 seed takes amazing care of his physique is through cupping therapy. It draws fluid into the area via suction, although it can leave markings similar to those on Shelton’s arm. These bruise-like markings are caused by ruptured blood vessels directly beneath the skin.

At the 2023 US Open, Shelton’s use of cupping therapy was first observed by fans. At the Grand Slam, he faced Frances Tiafoe in an all-American match.

As Shelton signed autographs, BBC host Clare Balding said: “Excellent work from Ben Shelton, he’s a great tennis player and a huge personality.  This is his first time making it to the quarterfinals.  He surpasses his father Bryan, whom he mentioned there. The marks on his shoulder, however, are not tattoos; rather, they are the result of cupping, which is similar to what swimmers do and truly brings the blood to the surface.”

With 90 singles victories and 67 losses, Shelton is still relatively young in his career when compared to tennis greats like the 38-year-old Serbian Novak Djokovic, but he has managed to climb to the ATP number 10 ranking.

Ben Shelton is dating USWNT star Trinity Rodman. The soccer player is also Dennis Rodman’s daughter, a basketball legend. She was in the player’s box on Monday, supporting Shelton. In a two-piece blue outfit, Rodman looked stunning while her boyfriend stole the show on the court.

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