Ben Shelton is the top-ranked American men’s player at the U.S. Open and, especially after Taylor Fritz’s surprising third round loss, the country’s best shot at a deep run in the fourth and final Grand Slam of the year.
But the former University of Florida men’s tennis star’s behavior on the court is starting to divide tennis fans. Some find him passionate, while others find him “unbearable.”
Shelton was heard grunting and yelling during his third round win on Friday evening at Arthur Ashe. His grunting got so loud, in fact, that his opponent made an official complaint to the head umpire. The complaint was not accepted, though.
“Reasons like this is why I can’t stand Denis Shapovalov,” one fan of Shelton wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Other fans, though, took Shapovalov’s side. They believed that Shelton was behaving in an “unbearable” way.
Tennis fans divided on Shelton’s behavior
“Even as a viewer, Shelton’s grunting is unbearable so I have to side with Shapo here,” one fan wrote.
“He’s crazy but he’s right, Shelton doesn’t do a grunt, he bellows as a way to distract the opponent and that isn’t talked about enough,” one fan added.
“Well, I’m with him on this one because Shelton thinking this is an NBA game is borderline ridiculous,” one fan added.
“Shapo was right there though. But good on Shelton for stopping after that fair play,” one fan added.
“Shapo is right, even for us yellton is annoying!” one fan added.
“No, Shapo is right here. Shelton is one of the unnatural grunters on tour. He does grunt even when serving sometimes,” one fan added.
What do you make of Shelton’s behavior as he looks to make another deep run at the U.S. Open, which will continue on ESPN’s networks on Sunday afternoon and Sunday evening?
