Ben Shelton Receives Flak For One Particular Act Despite Defeating Corentin Moutet at Paris Masters

Ben Shelton did not have much time to recover from his loss in the final to Giovanni Perricard at the Swiss Indoors tournament in Basel. So on Wednesday, when the American played Corentin Moutet in his first-round match at the Paris Masters, he came out all guns blazing.

Shelton was more animated than usual while reacting to winning points against Moutet. His loud and passionate cries seemed to have annoyed not just the partisan crowd in Paris-Bercy but also fans on social media.

The match had plenty of interesting points and moments, but this one particular point saw Shelton gain a lot of confidence. It quickly went viral on social media too.

The US Open 2023 semifinalist won the first set 6-3 and was cruising in the second, only to succumb to Moutet in a tiebreak. But Shelton regained his focus and momentum to clinch the deciding set 6-3 and move to the round of 32.

Shelton is being considered by legends such as John McEnroe to become one of the best players in the future. But his celebrations might gain unwanted attention amongst tennis fans and opponents such as Novak Djokovic.

When Djokovic accused Shelton of disrespect during US Open 2023 semi-final

Shelton still has time to mature as a player and a person, but professional tennis is not the same as playing in the NCAA.

The American youngster may have been liked for his original telephone celebration, but that did not go down well with Djokovic as he accused him of gamesmanship. The former World No.1 believed Shelton was disrespectful during their fixture (via an interview with 7News). So he reacted to that by mimicking his celebration once he won the match.

“It was a reaction against (Shelton), he did not behave properly, with respect, on court, and before the match. If anyone one places himself in the unsportsmanlike zone, I react.”

To be fair to the American, he has shown improvement like he did when he congratulated Perricard in a heartfelt speech despite a tough loss in the ATP 500 final in Switzerland. Shelton hilariously claimed that his 230 km/hr serve nearly ‘killed him’ and lauded his French opponent’s ability to fire in quick serves consistently, which made him concede eventually.

Well, all said and done, Shelton still has a long way to go in the Paris Masters. His time with French opponents will extend in the Round of 32 when he takes on Arthur Cazaux, who is a giant killer on his day. The match will take place not before Wednesday, 3.30 PM ET, and will be live-streamed on Tennis Channel.