Ben Shelton believes he’s made a big improvement in one area of his game right before Wimbledon this year

Shelton has proven himself on the Grand Slam stage a number of times already in his young career, having made the semifinals at both the Australian Open and the US Open.

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Last year, he recorded his best finish at Wimbledon, reaching the quarterfinals before falling to eventual champion Jannik Sinner.

Ahead of this year’s edition, Shelton spoke confidently when facing the media.

Ben Shelton says he has improved his return game

Discussing the importance of having a strong return game on grass in his pre-Wimbledon press conference, Shelton said: “I think over the past two years, that’s been a massive point of emphasis for me.

“I think my return has improved a lot. It’s not just the return; it’s also the couple of shots right after the return that are important as well.

“Grass is probably the toughest surface to return on. To be honest, I’ve played a lot of really good servers and really big servers over the last couple of weeks, so I feel prepared.

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“If a guy is serving great on grass and has a big serve, more likely than not he’s going to hold against pretty much anyone in the world.

“I think being able to win a point here or there, take advantage of second-serve returns, and be clutch in the tiebreak is what’s most important on grass.

“You’d like to be able to break every set and hold serve all the way through. I think that’s just how tennis goes sometimes. It has 100% been a big point of emphasis for me.”

Ben Shelton outlines the progress he has made with returning

Asked if he is frustrated to have not made more progress with his return, Shelton replied: “No, I wouldn’t say so.

“I mean, I think if you look at my return numbers in terms of percentage of points won, break point chances and percentage of games that I broke from when I came on tour, it’s black and white where I am as a returner.

“I was way below the average of top 100 players. Now I’m around the average in terms of top 50 for a lot of the return stats.

“I think that is a huge improvement, especially being in the top five in the serving category. I think it’s encouraging knowing that I have a lot more room to grow.

“But I do think I have made big strides, and I think it has shown in certain points in the year where I’ve played really well.”

Shelton ranks 69th on the ATP Tour in return rating and fifth in serve rating.