Jannik Sinner vs Ben Shelton Prediction 1/24/25 Australian Open Tennis Picks

Jannik Sinner and Ben Shelton meet in the semifinal of the 2025 Australian Open on Friday, January 24, 2025. Here’s our Jannik Sinner vs Ben Shelton prediction. This preview also includes a Jannik Sinner vs Ben Shelton pick.

Jannik Sinner Preview

Jannik Sinner is coming off a straight sets win over Alex de Minaur. The match took 23 games to decide.

Despite having the majority of home support on his side, de Minaur could not produce an upset nor win a set.

It’s the 10th time in a row that Sinner has beaten de Minaur.

In the victory, Sinner compiled 27 winners and 19 unforced errors, hitting two aces in the process.

Sinner landed 64% of first serves in play and won 84% of first serve points (32/38). 

Sinner won 81% of second serve points (17/21) and saved the solitary break point on his serve.

The Italian World No. 1 tallied 47% of return points (37/78) and 69% of net points (9/13). He converted six of 10 break points.

Sinner has now reached the semifinals of the Australian Open in successive seasons. He won the tournament 12 months ago.

Ben Shelton Preview

Ben Shelton will be competing in his first Australian Open semifinal. As the lone American left in the men’s draw, Shelton defeated surprise quarterfinalist Lorenzo Sonego in four sets.

The match lasted nearly four hours and took 45 games to decide. In the victory, Shelton hammered 54 winners and 33 unforced errors. That included nine aces and four double faults. 

Shelton landed 71% of first serves in play and won 75% of first serve points (75/100). 

Shelton won 59% of second serve points (24/41) and saved six of eight break points. 

The American won 35% of return points (54/153) and 78% of net points (38/49). He broke Sonego three times from 11 opportunities.

Shelton’s previous semifinal appearance at a Grand Slam was at the 2023 US Open. He lost to Djokovic in straight sets.

Jannik Sinner vs Ben Shelton Head-To-Head

• Sinner and Shelton have met five times on the ATP Tour.

• Sinner leads Shelton 4-1 in the head-to-head.

• Sinner also leads their hard-court head-to-head 2-1.

• They played three times in 2024. Sinner won all three meetings in straight sets.

Jannik Sinner vs Ben Shelton Prediction

Sinner is the red-hot favorite to win at -2000. Shelton starts an astronomical +900 to win on the money line. But despite the mammoth gap, matches between them have a tightly contested with at least one tie-break set in all five previous meetings.

Shelton possesses a formidable serve that can easily earn him cheap points, potentially stretching one of the sets into a tie-break, and he’s won a handful of those during the fortnight in Melbourne. The prudent move is considering the total games or sets spread, with Sinner eventually progressing into his third Grand Slam final.