ATP Live Race To Turin: It took Benjamin Shelton just 71 seconds to punch his ticket to the third round at Wimbledon on Friday. The American was already in command, leading Rinky Hijikata 6-2, 7-5, 5-4 when their match was halted Thursday night due to fading light at 9:29 p.m. local time.
Sixteen hours later, Shelton strode back onto No. 2 Court with one goal: finish it quickly. Four crisp swings of the racquet later, it was game, set, and match as per ATP. “He [the supervisor] said it was a five-minute warning until Hawk-Eye went down. was telling him, ‘I only need 60 seconds.’ That was kind of my goal when I went out there today," Shelton explained of the decision to suspend play on Thursday.
Shelton recounted the conversation with a smile, recalling his confusion over why the match couldn't continue. “I’m like, ‘I’m already serving for the match.’ At that point, I was not as upset about the decision,” he added.
