Paris
Sinner surpasses Shelton and is one step closer to regaining world number one
Italy’s 24th straight indoor win
October 31, 2025
Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour
Jannik Sinner is two wins away from reclaiming world number one in the PIF ATP Rankings.
Written by ATP Staff
Jannik Sinner defeated Ben Shelton at the Rolex Paris Masters on Friday to reach the semi-finals of the French ATP Masters 1000 event for the first time and continue his bid to return to world number one.
The second-seeded player made a statement in his 400th tour-level match, defeating the American 6-3, 6-3 to extend his indoor winning streak dating back to November 2023 to 24 matches. If Sinner secures his fifth trophy this season and his first ATP Masters 1000 title in 2025, he will return to No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings on Monday.
“It was a very tough match. Sometimes against Ben you can’t control too much because of his incredible serve, but today I felt like I was returning the serve really well,” Sinner said. According to Infosys ATP statistics, Sinner scored 71% of her second serve returns. “Also in the backcourt, I played very solid and very aggressive, so I’m very happy with today’s game.”
Sinner made no unforced errors on his reliable two-handed backhand and only scored 10 points on his forehand. The Italian showed aggression on his second-serve return and showed lightning-quick reflexes on Shelton’s powerful serve.
After taking three set points at 5-3 in the opener, Sinner seized his second chance, jumping to the side to avoid Shelton’s fierce body serve, and then backhand the ball into the open space to end the 34-minute game.
Sinner led 3-1 in the second set before being broken and Shelton sealed the victory with a banana arc forehand pass. But Sinner quickly rallied and ended up victorious in 69 minutes. Shelton’s bold second-serve gamble, serving at 190 km/h at 3-4, backfired with a double fault, giving Sinner a chance to serve in the match.
The 13th ATP Masters 1000 SF 🙌@janniksin Defeated Sheldon in straight sets and continued his 23-game winning streak in indoor hard court competition🤯@rolexpmasters | #rolexparismasters pic.twitter.com/YuEfcEYaQk
— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 31, 2025
Sinner’s next opponent will be third seed Alexander Zverev or 11th seed Daniil Medvedev as they continue their late-season push for a once-unlikely Nitto ATP Finals berth. Sinner leads Medvedev 8-7 in the Lexus ATP Head2Head Series and holds a 4-4 tie with Zverev, including a win over the German in the Vienna final last week.
With Friday’s victory, Sinner became the first Italian to reach the semi-finals of 43 Tour events, breaking a tie with Fabio Fognini and Adriano Panatta. Sinner is also the first Italian to reach the semifinals of the Rolex Paris Masters. Sinner had just one win in three indoor events heading into this week.
Since losing to Shelton at the first Lexus ATP Head2Head event in Shanghai two years ago, Sinner has defeated the 23-year-old in seven straight matches. Since that loss, the Italian is 22-0 against the Americans and 14-0 against southpaws.
