The following sentence sums up 22-year-old Ben Shelton’s current philosophy of tennis: “I think I’ll never be a finished product.” 

Shelton has no interest in sitting still and watching the competition figure him out. The Florida native, a fast riser who just became the youngest American to reach the BNP Paribas Open quarterfinals since Andy Roddick in 2004, prefers to live his days on the ATP Tour in a state of perpetual evolution. 

That willingness to embrace any weakness he detects in his game, and to then shore it up with a mixture of explorative work and endless repetition, is what makes Shelton not only a potential Top 10 player, but a player who has what it takes to become the first American to win a men’s singles Grand Slam title since Roddick in 2003. 

He knows he’s not there yet, but when Shelton speaks it’s easy to see that the plan is in place. 

A raw but explosive talent with a gargantuan kick serve that pops off the court like it was shot out of a pneumatic tube, the former Florida Gator spoke this week about wanting to improve his backhand, his return of serve and his composure. 

He spoke to BNPParibasOpen.com about his backhand with enthusiasm after his third-round win over Karen Khachanov. After making technical changes with his coach and father Bryan Shelton, the World No. 12 says he is excited about turning what he perceives to be a liability into a bulletproof shot. 

“I think that there are so many things that continue to need to get better on my backhand, in terms of variety, shot selection, shot tolerance,” he says. “But I’m seeing improvements every single day and I’m just happy that some of the work is paying off. That’s something for me that I felt used to be a liability and in a lot of the matches I play now, I don’t feel that way.”

Shelton talks the same way about his return. In a television interview he mapped out his plan to make the shot more lethal. 

“For me it’s reps against the best serves in the world, it’s figuring out what my way is to put the ball in the court when guys can hit their spots,” he said. “Not an easy task, I have to be able to adjust and I think for me that has been the biggest difference. 

“I feel like I can return from anywhere and make it happen right now. In the past I just had to do one thing and stick with that one thing for the whole match and I just had more of a rigid mentality.”

Finally, there’s the mentality, the body language and the energy he projects during difficult moments on court. Mature at 22, Shelton recognizes that he still has the potential to sabotage himself at times. 

“For me it’s huge,” he said. “If you want to be able to come through in the big moments, you have to be in the right place mentally. 

“I think that it’s a huge theme for me, and something that you see the greats do. You are like ‘How do they always come out of these holes?’ They always back themselves and body language is huge.” 

One thing Shelton doesn’t need to work on too much is his serve. Even the hardest servers on tour can’t help but marvel at Shelton’s pop. 

“I think I saw him play last night and it was like 150 miles an hour. I don't think I can do that,” said his quarterfinal opponent Jack Draper.  

Package all of Shelton’s improvements with what’s already world-class about his game, and you’re talking about a force to be reckoned with. And he’s only getting better with time.