"Ben Shelton-Frances Tiafoe not being night match is absurd";"Ruined hype to accommodate Djokovic" - Fans slam 'terrible' scheduling for US Open Day 5
Ben Shelton, Frances Tiafoe and Coco Gauff are poised to delight their home crowd with highly anticipated matchups on Day 5. However, the scheduling decisions for the American stars' matches at Arthur Ashe Stadium have baffled tennis fans, with many accusing the New York Major of favoring Novak Djokovic.
Gauff is set to continue her title defense against Elina Svitolina in a blockbuster third-round clash, which will kick off the day's play at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Friday, August 30, at 12:00 pm local time.
Meanwhile, Frances Tiafoe and Ben Shelton will lock horns in a highly anticipated rematch of their quarterfinal clash from last year's US Open, where Shelton claimed a 6-2, 3-6, 7-6(7), 6-2 victory. The all-American battle will follow Gauff's clash during the day session on the main court.
The evening session at Arthur Ashe Stadium will commence at 7:00 pm with Novak Djokovic's battle against Alexei Popyrin for a place in the fourth round, followed by Aryna Sabalenka's clash against Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Fans were baffled by the decision not to feature Coco Gauff or the encounter between Shelton and Tiafoe in the primetime slot, particularly voicing their displeasure over the "terrible" scheduling for the all-American showdown.
"I’d be pissed if I was an American tennis fan with a night session ticket on Ashe tomorrow and didn’t get to see Coco or Tiafoe/Shelton. Not as surprised Coco is playing during the day but Tiafoe vs Shelton is the definition of an electric night session on Ashe," one fan commented.
"This (Ben Shelton vs Frances Tiafoe) not being the night match on Ashe is absurd. You have the two best personalities in American men's tennis, maybe all of men's tennis playing each other and you're not doing it under the lights. Awful decision," a fan posted.
"Well and truly baffled that this has been scheduled for the day session. Would love to know the reasoning - because I don't think there'll be many matches more 'made for primetime' than this. #USOpen," another fan chimed in.
"A terrible decision to not place this all-American 🇺🇸 showdown in primetime on Ashe. What an incredible moment this could have been for audiences both in-person and watching at home to witness two talented black men compete on tennis’s biggest stage. Huge missed opportunity. 🎾," said another.
Others, meanwhile, expressed frustration over Novak Djokovic playing a third straight match during the night session, bemoaning that the decision to accommodate the Serb had "ruined the hype" of Ben Shelton's clash against Frances Tiafoe.
"Not a showcase match at night because Novak whines about playing in the day. Sad," one fan argued.
"I’m guessing they bent to the will of Novak as per usual," another fan wrote.
"Congrats. You guys completely ruined the hype of his match to accommodate Novak. How incompetent can you be?," a fan remarked.
"Absolute disgrace that Novak plays at night AGAIN instead of this," said another.
Novak Djokovic on course to face winner between Frances Tiafoe and Ben Shelton in US Open 4R
The winner of the all-American showdown between Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe will face defending champion Novak Djokovic in the fourth round of the 2024 US Open, provided the Serb defeats Alexei Popyrin.
If Shelton triumphs over Tiafoe, he could set up a rematch of his semifinal clash against Djokovic from last year's New York Major, where the Serb claimed a 6-3, 6-2, 7-6(4) victory.
Andrey Rublev and Grigor Dimitrov loom as the potential quarterfinal opponents for Ben Shelton if he manages to avenge his loss to the 24-time Grand Slam champion.