"I liked his attitude": Boris Becker names potential candidate to join Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz in new 'Big Three'

Former world number one Germany’s Boris Becker believes that America’s Ben Shelton is the closest player to join Italy’s Jannik Sinner and Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz in the new ‘Big Three’. The original ‘Big Three’ consisted of the likes of Switzerland’s Roger Federer, Spain’s Rafael Nadal and Serbia’s Novak Djokovic.

Sinner and Alcaraz are already regarded as two of the best players currently playing in men’s tennis in the singles category. Former world number one Becker has been recently quoted in a report where he picked America’s Ben Shelton as a potential candidate to join the new in the new ‘Big Three’.

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“Now on the circuit, we have another dilemma… we need a [Rafael] Nadal to complete the new Big Three. And another player to follow the Fab Four,” he said while talking to Italian media outlet Gazzetta dello Sport. “The one closest to reaching the top for me is Ben Shelton. The most ready, at first, seemed to be Holger Rune, but this year he hasn’t made much progress. I watched the American (Shelton) for a long time in the Laver Cup, in singles and doubles, and I liked his attitude. He smiles, he puts on a show, he entertains and he has fun.”

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Shelton has been regarded as one of the most talented players currently playing in the men’s circuit. The 22-year-old has had a difficult campaign this year. He played in all four Grand Slams but could not manage to cement a place in the quarterfinal or beyond in any one of them. His most impressive outing in a major competition came at Wimbledon, where he lost in the fourth round to Italy’s Sinner in straight sets with a score of 6-2, 6-4, 7-6. His only title this year came in Houston, where he lifted the ATP 250 title after beating fellow countryman Frances Tiafoe in the final with a score of 7-5, 4-6, 6-3.