Wimbledon 2026: Fourth Seed Shelton Knocked Out in First Round
Shelton, an All England Club quarter-finalist last year, suffered his first opening-round defeat at a Grand Slam since the 2023 French Open
By : AFP
Update: 2026-06-30 19:09 GMT
London: American fourth seed Ben Shelton was dumped out in the first round of Wimbledon by Finland's Otto Virtanen, missing a match point before losing in a fifth-set tie-break.
The 23-year-old Shelton, an All England Club quarter-finalist last year, suffered his first opening-round defeat at a Grand Slam since the 2023 French Open.
"This is definitely one of the toughest losses of my career, coming here at Wimbledon," said Shelton, who won the Stuttgart grass-court title in the build-up to Wimbledon.
"First time I've lost in the first round here. I came in playing really good tennis. I didn't even think I played a poor match today. Things just didn't go my way."
World number 140 Virtanen will face British wildcard Arthur Fery in the second round after a 6-4, 3-6, 6-7 (8/10), 6-2, 7-6 (11/9) victory that lasted four hours and 21 minutes.
"I had a great month before this one, played a lot of grass matches," said Virtanen.
"I missed last year, had a few injuries... It feels so good to be back here."