"Can't call you a rookie anymore" - Coco Gauff, Frances Tiafoe, Felix Auger-Aliassime and others react to Ben Shelton's 2023 season
Coco Gauff, Frances Tiafoe, Felix Auger-Aliassime, and other tennis players have shared their admiration for Ben Shelton's remarkable 2023 season.
Merely a year ago, Shelton was ranked No. 158 in the world and had just started his journey on the ATP tour. In his first season on tour, the American rose to a career-high ranking of World No. 15. He achieved impressive feats such as reaching the quarterfinals of the Australian Open as well as the semifinals of the US Open.
Shelton also played an instrumental role in Team World's second consecutive Laver Cup victory. Furthermore, the 21-year-old recently won his maiden ATP title in Tokyo, defeating Aslan Karatsev in the final of the ATP 500 event.
The American's campaign at the ongoing Paris Masters came to an end in the first round as Alejandro Davidovich Fokina claimed a 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-3 victory over the 15th seed.
Following his defeat, Ben Shelton took to social media to reflect on his season and extend gratitude to those who supported him throughout the year.
"Hard to find words to describe the season I had in my first year out on tour. So here are some of the people I got to share it with that made it special 💙 See y’all down under✌🏽", he captioned the post.
Shelton's post caught the attention of the tennis world, including his friends and colleagues.
Coco Gauff commended the 21-year-old on his debut season and playfully remarked that she could no longer tease him for being a rookie.
"Unreal debut🤯 only sad part is I can’t call you a rookie anymore :(," she commented.
Frances Tiafoe and Felix Auger-Aliassime also shared their appreciation for the 21-year-old's stellar season.
"Congrats Brodie," Tiafoe wrote.
"Hell of a year my guy👏🏽🙌🏽," Auger-Aliassime posted.
Max Purcell, meanwhile, joked about their doubles campaign at the French Open not making the cut for the post.
"2nd round French open doubs? Didn’t mean much?" he joked.
Arthur Fils and Mackenzie McDonald extended their best wishes to the 21-year-old for the 2024 season.
"Australia Big Ben 🤝🏾🤝🏾," Fils commented.
"Epppic freshman year. 2024 we coming for ya🔥," McDonald shared.
Prakash Amritraj, a former tennis player and a reporter on the Tennis Channel, also shared an encouraging message.
"What a season brother.. and only just the beginning 🙌🏾 👑," he wrote.
Ben Shelton: "When my season is over, I’ll have time to think about everything that’s happened this year"
Ahead of his Paris Masters campaign, Ben Shelton reflected on his debut season on tour, admitting that he still hadn't fully grasped the significance of it.
"It’s definitely not sunk in yet. I think that when my season is over, I’ll have some time to think about everything that’s happened this year and kind of reflect on it. I’m just really enjoying the moment right now," Ben Shelton told ATPTour.com.
The American marveled at his meteoric rise to a career-high ranking of World No. 15 this season. He also expressed his admiration for fellow players Christopher Eubanks and Aleksandar Vukic, both of whom also had breakout seasons this year.
"I think that’s the craziest thing to think about, how far I’ve come. But it’s interesting that a lot of guys who where in a similar position to me last year, like Chris Eubanks or Aleks Vukic, have kind of had the same trajectory," he said.
"They’re Top 50 now, so to be playing Challengers with all those guys last year and now we are at the point where we are playing a full ATP schedule, it’s something really cool that we share," he added.