Ben Shelton apologised to reporters after delivering a fiery response to the first question at his US Open press conference on Saturday. The 23-year-old American, who reached the semi-finals in 2023 before losing to eventual champion Novak Djokovic, was visibly frustrated when asked about his serve.
Serve analytics frustration
When asked whether he monitors the latest analytics surrounding serve quality, Shelton confirmed he had observed them "100 per cent," even if he does not necessarily accept the findings produced by the technology's assessment.
"It p***es me off because, you know, like I hit a kick serve that's 87 miles an hour, but it jumps over the guy's head and they're like, 'That serve quality out of 10 is like a 7.5.' I'm like, 'No, it's not,'" an animated Shelton said. "So I finished the Montreal tournament, which I think I served great, and I'm like 0.6 under my average serve quality."
Quick apology and passion for the game
Upon realising his sharp tone towards the reporter and the assembled media, Shelton swiftly changed tack, explaining that he remained deeply committed to improvement and that countless factors beyond velocity contribute to an effective serve.
"Sorry that I'm coming in hot today," he added, laughing, prompting scattered chuckles from reporters. "I'm passionate about this, right? But yeah, I think there's so many areas other than just speed that matter when it comes to serve."
For Shelton, serve velocity represents one aspect of his game that makes him a formidable opponent. Previously, his serves have reached 151 mph, placing them amongst the fastest in tennis history. Australian Sam Groth holds the record for the fastest serve in professional tennis at 163.7 mph during the 2012 Busan Open, a Challenger event. Meanwhile, John Isner recorded a serve at 157.2 mph at the 2016 Davis Cup, an official ATP main-tour record.
Focus on the first round
Beyond his serves, Shelton also addressed how he maintains perspective and focuses on each round to stay grounded and prevent the enormity of competing in New York from overwhelming his mindset.
"As I always say, I'm focused on my first round, my first match," he said. "I don't think too far beyond that. I don't look at the draw other than who I'm playing in the first round, and I think that that's the only way for me to be able to kind of compartmentalise and stay in the moment when I'm here playing. I'm not someone who likes to get ahead of myself."
"I know how much quality that there is in the draw. I think it'd be disrespectful to just think, oh, there's no centre. You know, it's a massive opportunity. When you have guys who've won slams this year in [Alexander] Zverev and obviously [Novak Djokovic's] in the draw, guys who've won big titles and have been in great form... [trying] kind of discredit the group that is playing high-level tennis right now wouldn't be smart."
"Going into a tournament like this, I think that, you know, I always have respect for whoever is playing. I try not to over-respect my opponents, obviously, but I think that it is a very important part of who I am as a person and how I look at, you know, my tennis game and the tournaments I'm playing."
Shelton faces Tallon Griekspoor in the first round of the US Open.
