Ben Shelton at the US Open was right in the middle of a competitive Day 4 battle on Arthur Ashe Stadium, with the American locked level in a match that had already swung back and forth against Hubert Hurkacz. Shelton led 6-3, 5-7, 7-6, 0-0 and had already moved 2-0 ahead in the third-set tiebreak, underlining just how fine the margins had become.
It was the sort of live update that captured the feel of the day at Flushing Meadows: rain on the grounds, delays on the outer courts until 4 p.m. ET, and a schedule still packed with heavyweight names. Jessica Pegula and Daniil Medvedev had already advanced to the third round in straight sets, while Aryna Sabalenka and Carlos Alcaraz were among the later attractions in the second-round action.
Arthur Ashe Stadium stays in the spotlight
For Shelton, the immediate task was simple enough to describe but difficult to execute: stay composed in a match that had already produced a set apiece and then a tense tiebreak battle. The fact that he had edged in front 2-0 in the third-set breaker suggested momentum was briefly with him, but Hurkacz had already shown enough resistance to keep the contest live.
That is what made the match so watchable. There was no sense that Shelton had full control, only that he had found a way to create a small opening in a crucial moment. In Grand Slam tennis, that kind of edge can mean everything.
Rain shapes the day at Flushing Meadows
The weather was also part of the story. Rain delayed play on the outer courts until 4 p.m. ET, which pushed more attention toward the biggest show courts and kept the day’s live narrative moving in stages rather than all at once.
Later in the update, Marta Kostyuk beat Sloane Stephens 6-1, 7-5 under the roof at Louis Armstrong Stadium, showing how much the conditions varied across the venue. Some matches had to wait, others carried on in controlled conditions, and Shelton’s contest became one of the central live pictures of the day.
With more second-round action still to come, the focus remained on whether Shelton could turn his narrow advantage into something more decisive. On a rain-hit day at Flushing Meadows, the American on Arthur Ashe Stadium was still very much in the fight.
