College players in US summer Futures and Challengers

A better college to pro comparison example would be Isner or Norrie.

I don’t know who to compare Shelton’s top upside to - hesitant to say it, but from a game standpoint (big serve, big forehand, good transition game and volleys and good dubs player) I’d almost say Kyrgios

serve may never reach that level, and obviously a different persona, but that’s who comes to mind for me
 
I don’t know who to compare Shelton’s top upside to - hesitant to say it, but from a game standpoint (big serve, big forehand, good transition game and volleys and good dubs player) I’d almost say Kyrgios

serve may never reach that level, and obviously a different persona, but that’s who comes to mind for me
I see top 30 for sure. To your point "top upside" is a little hard to tell as he improves physical skills and intangibles and where that takes him is a tough guess. He's got serious game now, all the best to him.
 
Was in Columbus for the Challenger over the weekend. OSU's Cannon Kingsley made a nice run to the Semi's beating Paul Jubb (#206) and Aleksander Vukic (#138) along the way before losing in straights to eventual Champion and #1 seed Jordan Thompson (#85). Kingsley played a very tight 1st set and had a chance to serve It out, but got broken and lost in a tiebreak, then Thompson took over in the 2nd set. Kingsley moved up 78 spots to career high #488. UK's Gabriel Diallo (#318) made it to the quarters, but didn't have a good showing against Thompson and got rolled 6-2, 6-1. Some nice results for OSU guys in dubs as Vocel/Cash and Kingsley/Tracy both made It to the semi's but lost.
 
Shelton vs Riffice next round in Tiburon, following nice wins over Quiroz and E King, respectively

I'll stay out of the prediction business in this one and just hope for a good match, even though I have thoughts
 
Some good results from freshmen in Tulsa. Jonah Braswell (UF), Ozan Baris (MSU), Pedro Rodenas (Duke) through to the main draw. Basavareddy (Stanford) could join them. Braswell particularly impressive as he came through pre-qualifying.
 
yeah the Gator freshmen look damn good

not just Braswell in singles, but the dubs team of T&T in dubs (all taking down ranked opponents, all qualifying for main draw)

in a year or two, when Bonetto and Shalbayh are juniors / seniors, and those three are sophomores / juniors, UF will be right back up there competing for a title (I think it might only take a year, but don't want to get too bold yet!)
 
Jonah Braswell into the second round. Kudos to the UF coaching staff for developing him so quickly. He was a decent junior but not this good. Something to be said for the UF system and the success it has had
 
Baris the giant killer from MSU takes out Kingsley in straights in consolation. Just continuing where he left off at Kalamazoo. And then there’s Quinn who looks awesome and set to win it all. Man this new breed is fearless and dare I say overachieving!
 
Shelton vs Diallo tomorrow

in other news, Wolf with a big win over Cressy, up to new career high 68 in the world (slowly closing in on Kudla’s career high of 53 - shhhh - don’t tell Bob)
 
Shelton vs Diallo tomorrow

in other news, Wolf with a big win over Cressy, up to new career high 68 in the world (slowly closing in on Kudla’s career high of 53 - shhhh - don’t tell Bob)
Diallo with a win over Shelton in three sets. Will he now decide to turn pro and forego college? Decisions!
 
Diallo with a win over Shelton in three sets. Will he now decide to turn pro and forego college? Decisions!
Diallo also had quality win in the first round. He defeated 252 in the world (Riedi) 2-6,6-4,6-2.
Another Kentucky player (Ayeni) is also making noise in the Fairfield challenger.
In the 2nd round, Ayeni def. August Holmgren 6-3,6-4 (in the first round, Homgren had waxed last week's champion (Zach Svadja_ 3-6,6-1,6-0

If Diallo comes back....Diallo, Ayeni, Liam Draxl, Taha Baadi , Joshua Lapadat....look out SEC, look out nation
 
Diallo also had quality win in the first round. He defeated 252 in the world (Riedi) 2-6,6-4,6-2.
Another Kentucky player (Ayeni) is also making noise in the Fairfield challenger.
In the 2nd round, Ayeni def. August Holmgren 6-3,6-4 (in the first round, Homgren had waxed last week's champion (Zach Svadja_ 3-6,6-1,6-0

If Diallo comes back....Diallo, Ayeni, Liam Draxl, Taha Baadi , Joshua Lapadat....look out SEC, look out nation
Ayeni sprang a surprise a few years back when he committed to Cornell. His game suffered in the Ivy setup. Now as a fifth year grad transfer at UK he seems to be blossoming. Had a decent run in Tulsa too before bowing out to Fomba of TCU. Agree UK looks scary if all these guys actually decide to return
 
Don't tell Bob
JJ Wolf has advanced to the final of an ATP250 tourney in Florence, Italy
impressive wins over 4 seed Cressy and 7 seed Bublik
will play Felix AA or 3 seed Musetti in the finals

awesome - 56 in the world - three spots behind Kudla’a career high

and basically no points to defend in the first three GSs next year - he’s almost certainly headed to the top 40
 
Watched Wolfs match against Bublik. Wolf managed to contain his energy and frustration, especially in the second set and pull off a great win.
That would be a fun match to watch. Bublik has an entertaining unpredictable game, and Wolf has a lot of fire power and a high ceiling when he's not making errors.
 
Shelton up to 148 as he moves along in Charlottesville

J Shang, still 17 years old but forced into the pro circuit because bob dashed his dreams of finding a D1 team that was willing to take him, is also into the CVille QFs and up to 184
 
Is he lost to college tennis? I’d think so
For diallo, I’d imagine it’s more about his bank roll.

Unlike Shelton who had the US Open summer swing, (in particular WCs into Atlanta, Cincinnati, and US Open) to cement his decision to turn pro, Diallo doesn’t have those luxuries.

As a Canadian he’s not eligible for the USTA’s Pro Circuit AO wild card, so that takes out playing the AO as an easy springboard. I mean if he cracks top 200, he’ll easily be able to enter qualifies for AO but having to win 3 matches is very different than getting a wild card.


And realistically, unless he cracks the ATP 150 before March, he’s not got a real shot at playing qualies at either Sunshine Swing events.


So ultimately, unless Diallo’s got money to burn and/or a real hankering to play clay court challengers to grind points to get to Roland Garros, he’s better off playing Spring season and then launching his professional career during the US Open swing.
 
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I really hope Diallo stays with UK. His rise this summer has been amazing and his addition to the team will make them a very strong NCAA contender.
 
For diallo, I’d imagine it’s more about his bank roll.

Unlike Shelton who had the US Open summer swing, (in particular WCs into Atlanta, Cincinnati, and US Open) to cement his decision to turn pro, Diallo doesn’t have those luxuries.

As a Canadian he’s not eligible for the USTA’s Pro Circuit AO wild card, so that takes out playing the AO as an easy springboard. I mean if he cracks top 200, he’ll easily be able to enter qualifies for AO but having to win 3 matches is very different than getting a wild card.


And realistically, unless he cracks the ATP 150 before March, he’s not got a real shot at playing qualies at either Sunshine Swing events.


So ultimately, unless Diallo’s got money to burn and/or a real hankering to play clay court challengers to grind points to get to Roland Garros, he’s better off playing Spring season and then launching his professional career during the US Open swing.
Wonder if he can get bankrolled by Tennis Canada. They are known to have deep pockets and support their rising stars until they can stand on their own
 
Kovacevic #177 (illinois) and #128 Shelton are playing in the Knoxville Challenger for the 4th time . Kovacevic is 2-1 with a 4,5 win vs Ben this summer, but Shelton is predicted to win in 3 today. Live video is on now https://www.atptour.com/en/atp-chal...ksandar-kovacevic-vs-ben-shelton/2022/363/all Appears players are on serve 5-4 with Shelton serving to stay in 1st set

shelton takes him down in straights, up to #117

2-1 in the h2h this year

sure Kova also won their first matchup in 2021
 
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Diallo into the semis in Canada challenger
Diallo defeated 216 in the world...yesterday 6-3,5-7,7-5

plays 259 in the world...Dom Koepfer today

In Winston Salem, Duke freshman Rodenas is having a strong tourney...He plays Alex Michelsen today in futures semis
 
quinn likely to also be very successful, just the difference in two years of growth

Shelton to #109, could rise to 95 with a third straight challenger win (not necessarily predicting this)

As an aside, if Shelton gets ranked high enough to earn direct entry to AO also frees up the USTA Wild Card for either Eubanks or Sandgren
 
Looking at this week's results, I was curious to see how the WCs from Michigan State did in the Lansing tournament. I knew Ozan would do well but the rest of the MSU team is sub UTR12.5. I was surprised to see that 2/3 MSU WCs (Ozan had direct entry) won matches vs seeded players. Freshman David Saye, 5 star, UTR 12.21 in his first Future with only 2 US jr ITF events played, beat Florida's Goodger (6 seed) in 3 and also won his 2nd round to reach QFs. Very rare for player to win ATP points in 1st Future-I know of jr ITF top 50 players who played 10+ Futures before winning a point. Max Sheldon, 12.42 beat 2nd seed Colin Markes. Even 12.0 UTR Pero had a close loss 5,4 vs the 5 seed. Kudos to these guys for making the most of a great opportunity. I wonder why Mich State vs U of M hosted a Future-guess the Lansing tennis community must have more sponsors. MSU outside of Ozan has the roster of a better MM team-yet this week they have played like they really belong in the Big 10. With a new head coach (former asst Jadun) and one of the top recruits in Ozan, it will be interesting to see if MSU has a chance at 4th or 5th place in Big 10 after years toward the bottom.

It is curious to me too why Lansing and Columbus Futures are held on the same weekend vs consecutive weekends as both would draw from many of the same players. If they were different weekends, collegians could play 2 events post fall season. I looked at the rosters around freeze date last year, and most of the same players were high on the alternate lists for both.

Columbus rec player Joey Dillon UTR 4.14 again managed to earn a Quali spot for Columbus event. Now he is 0,0 for 5 Futures. Playing one tourney is a bucket list item-playing more than that is an insult to the players who traveled for high level competition, possibly paid for a hotel (collegians often find hosts),and the chance for an ATP point. His 1st round opponents won't have the best match prep for the 2nd round. If rec players want to play with D1 guys, pay them to be a hitting partner! It only costs $40 to enter a Future so that's a cheap way to get a college hit-if you are a 3.0-4.0 adult, just dont-leave the spot open for a collegian or junior . USTA/ITF go ahead and get the WTN updated and correct for college results, and please use that to number unranked alternates vs random computer generated list. Dillon is WTN 24.2. Most college players 12.5UTR or above have WTN<4 or are in pro zone.
 
Looking at this week's results, I was curious to see how the WCs from Michigan State did in the Lansing tournament. I knew Ozan would do well but the rest of the MSU team is sub UTR12.5. I was surprised to see that 2/3 MSU WCs (Ozan had direct entry) won matches vs seeded players. Freshman David Saye, 5 star, UTR 12.21 in his first Future with only 2 US jr ITF events played, beat Florida's Goodger (6 seed) in 3 and also won his 2nd round to reach QFs. Very rare for player to win ATP points in 1st Future-I know of jr ITF top 50 players who played 10+ Futures before winning a point. Max Sheldon, 12.42 beat 2nd seed Colin Markes. Even 12.0 UTR Pero had a close loss 5,4 vs the 5 seed. Kudos to these guys for making the most of a great opportunity. I wonder why Mich State vs U of M hosted a Future-guess the Lansing tennis community must have more sponsors. MSU outside of Ozan has the roster of a better MM team-yet this week they have played like they really belong in the Big 10. With a new head coach (former asst Jadun) and one of the top recruits in Ozan, it will be interesting to see if MSU has a chance at 4th or 5th place in Big 10 after years toward the bottom.

It is curious to me too why Lansing and Columbus Futures are held on the same weekend vs consecutive weekends as both would draw from many of the same players. If they were different weekends, collegians could play 2 events post fall season. I looked at the rosters around freeze date last year, and most of the same players were high on the alternate lists for both.

Columbus rec player Joey Dillon UTR 4.14 again managed to earn a Quali spot for Columbus event. Now he is 0,0 for 5 Futures. Playing one tourney is a bucket list item-playing more than that is an insult to the players who traveled for high level competition, possibly paid for a hotel (collegians often find hosts),and the chance for an ATP point. His 1st round opponents won't have the best match prep for the 2nd round. If rec players want to play with D1 guys, pay them to be a hitting partner! It only costs $40 to enter a Future so that's a cheap way to get a college hit-if you are a 3.0-4.0 adult, just dont-leave the spot open for a collegian or junior . USTA/ITF go ahead and get the WTN updated and correct for college results, and please use that to number unranked alternates vs random computer generated list. Dillon is WTN 24.2. Most college players 12.5UTR or above have WTN<4 or are in pro zone.

Having Tournaments on consecutive weekends favors top players looking to gobble up points.

Having them on same Weekend protects makes it more likely that “local” talent will go farther since the field is not as deep.

Edit also Tennis Record report Joey Dillion as having a 28.6 win percentage playing 3.5 USTA league and a dynamic rating of 3.249.

Definitely someone with too much time on his hands
 
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Having Tournaments on consecutive weekends favors top players looking to gobble up points.
Having them on same Weekend protects makes it more likely that “local” talent will go farther since the field is not as deep.
In Nov-the weeks before Thanksgiving week, there are usually 2-3 US Futures per week. The final week with 3 Futures would be the best chance for local talent to go deep. What happened last year with Columbus and Lansing on the same weekend, there were a lot of byes in Columbus. With the same alternates on both lists after freeze dates, Mid-west alternates just chose to sign up at one site. For some reason Lansing filled up and Columbus had 8 byes in Qualis when both sites had similar number of alternates at freeze date (around 100)-guess players thought Lansing qualis would be easier. If there had been only one Mid-west Future that weekend and the other Future on a different Nov weekend, both Qualis would have filled and some players would have gotten to play twice. Hard for players to figure out where they stand as an alternate with players on both lists at freeze date and not knowing where the ones above on list will go. Player may not travel because he doesnt think he will get in, and then the alternates above him went to the other site, and he would have easily gotten in. If players contact TD after freeze date, they may find out about alternate withdrawals after online freeze and know better their chances at each site. This year players must have figured it out as there were full Quali draws at both sites.

Why do qualis matter? Because every player outside of WCs has to start in Qualis until they earn enough ATP points. Even guys who play 1 or 2 for top 16 teams may be in Qualis (unless they play for host school-then they get WC). What is so amazing no is how many of those 1s and 2s have done so well that they are getting in Challengers. I look at some of the Fall Futures and they seem weaker but that is because the guys who played them in the past are now ATP 300-600 which is good new for colelge tennis-making room for the next batch to earn ATP points...
 
As an aside, if Shelton gets ranked high enough to earn direct entry to AO also frees up the USTA Wild Card for either Eubanks or Sandgren

Shelton Live ranking dropped to 109 because the Helsinki tournament offers a bit more points. if Shelton wins this week, he will get the DA. If you are not in top 200, pro tennis is just not worth it. There are still seven more tournaments left worldwide this month. Dudes will be scrambling for that DA.
 
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