Ben Shelton doesn't mind a competitive atmosphere, nor does he mind a battle on the court, but sometimes things can get too personal.
Shelton is not one to back off in any scenario, as he has demonstrated a few times. He's clashed with the crowd on occasion, but there are also some players who don't mind it either.
He even had a bit of a staredown with Novak Djokovic at last year's US Open, where he lost to the Serbian in three sets. This is nothing new to Shelton, who played college tennis before becoming a professional on the ATP Tour.
The atmosphere there can get rowdy pretty quickly, so he's experienced all sorts of things. He talked a bit about that after his most recent win at the 2024 Roland Garros in Paris, admitting that sometimes things can get quite personal.
The atmosphere in Paris does remind him of that because the crowd in the French capital will let players hear it, especially if they're taking on a native player. Some already complained about that, but Shelton is not the type to complain. If anything, he'll embrace it.
"I mean I'm not going to say the things that the guys said to me but obviously the favorite topics when you're playing college tennis - they'll talk about your family, they'll talk about your girlfriend and anything that you've ever posted on the internet. It's all fair game so some of the stuff can get pretty personal but I've never experienced that since I've been out on tour."
Shelton's match against Hugo Gaston certainly prepared him for what he might face in the coming rounds of the event. He downed a native player, but with the way he likes to engage with the crowd, don't be surprised if Shelton gets the crowd backing him in the coming rounds.
He's just the type of electric player who hypes up the crowd, and the French fans will certainly respond to that.
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