Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton’s eagerly-anticipated semifinal showdown at the 2025 National Bank Open in Toronto was bizarrely delayed due to a technical problem with the electronic line calling system. Thankfully for the tournament, players and fans, the technical issue was resolved and play eventually commenced.
Fritz and Shelton had both walked out on to Toronto’s Sobeys Stadium’s Center Court on the night of Wednesday, August 6, and were all set to get the match started when they were informed about the electronic line calling system issue. Subsequently, the American ATP stars were asked to leave the court, while officials discussed what could be done to resolve the problem.
Watch the bizarre moment below:
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The delay lasted around 15-20 minutes, following which Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton returned to the court once the technical snag was resolved. The 2025 National Bank Open semifinal between the pair marks only their second ATP Tour-level clash. Fritz came out on top in their first meeting; a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, second-round victory at the 2023 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.
At the time of writing, Shelton had already won the first set 6-4 against Fritz in Toronto.
Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton's Canadian Open encounter marks first all-American Masters 1000 SF since 2010
Fritz reached the 2025 National Bank Open semis with a quarterfinal win against Andrey Rublev. Subsquently, Shelton made it to the last four after defeating Alex de Minaur. These results led to the first all-American semifinal clash at ATP Masters 1000 level since the 2010 Cincinnati Open, where Andy Roddick came up trumps against Mardy Fish in the last four.
After setting up the semifinal against Fritz in Toronto, Shelton showered praise on his compatriot and also briefly touched on their friendship.
"He's a big-match player. He's been carrying the flag for the United States in the big tournaments as of late. He's clutch, serves well. We're great friends. It's a match that I'm really excited about."
The Americans have been teammates in the past, representing Team World at the 2023 and 2024 editions of the Laver Cup. They are both set to feature for Team World again at this year's Laver Cup in San Francisco.
The winner of the match between Taylor Fritz, the World No. 4, and the seventh-ranked Ben Shelton, will go on to face Karen Khachanov in the final. Khachanov, the No. 11 seed in Toronto, earlier outlasted top seed Alexander Zverev in the other semifinal. Fritz trails Khachanov 1-2 in the pair's ATP Tour-level head-to-head, while Shelton has a 1-0 lead against the Russian.
