Ben Shelton Blasts Australian Open Media For Being Disrespectful, Specifically Towards American Players
The actual tennis being played at the Australian Open isn't the only big-time headline from the year's first Grand Slam. You may want to sit down before reading this shocking news, but the media has put itself right in the center of attention.
Drama with the Aussie Open media started early on when local broadcaster Tony Jones decided to mock Novak Djokovic, arguably the greatest tennis player to ever live, and his supporters during a live spot outside of Rod Laver Arena.
Jones turned toward a crowd of chanting Djokovic fans and sarcastically started chanting "Novak is overrated ... Novak’s a has-been ... Novak kick him out." Djokovic elected to skip his on-court post-match interview after his straight-set win over Jiri Lehecka following the very strange incident.
Djokovic is used to being caught in the crosshairs of the media, especially in Australia, but he hasn't been the only player in the tournament who has found themselves in a weird spot with reporters down under.
American Ben Shelton has picked up on how "embarrassing and disrespectful" some of the broadcasters and media members have been throughout the tournament. Shelton specifically mentioned an incident involving Learner Tien, a fellow American, who upset Daniil Medvedev in the second round.
"I've been a little bit shocked this week with how players have been treated by the broadcasters. I don't think that the guy who mocked Novak, I don't think that was just a single event. I've noticed it with different people, not just myself," Shelton said after punching his ticket into the semifinals Tuesday night.
"I noticed it with Learner Tien in one of his matches. I think when he beat [Daniil] Medvedev, his postmatch interview, I thought it was kind of embarrassing and disrespectful, that interview. There are some comments that have been made to me in postmatch interviews by a couple of different guys, whether it was, 'Hey, [Gael] Monfils is old enough to be your dad. Maybe he is your dad.'"
The 22-year-old wasn't done there, he brought another receipt to the conversation by bringing up his on-court interview that had taken place just minutes prior.
"Or today on the court, 'Hey, Ben, how does it feel that no matter who you play in your next match, no one is going to be cheering for you?' I mean, may be true, but I just don't think the comment is respectful from a guy I've never met before in my life," Shelton said.
"I feel like broadcasters should be helping us grow our sport and help these athletes who just won matches on the biggest stage enjoy one of their biggest moments. I feel like there's just been a lot of negativity. I think that's something that needs to change."
While Shelton may be beating around the bush that media members in Australia are being extra critical toward Americans, his note about the on-court broadcaster claiming nobody will be rooting for him paints a clear picture.
Shelton isn't going up against an Australian in his semi-final match, he's taking on Jannik Sinner, who is from Italy. Sinner will have plenty of support as the No. 1 player in the world, but his style both on and off the court isn't exactly thrilling, to put it mildly. Sinner may be more robot than he is human.
Shelton, on the other hand, is one of the most exciting players in the sport, and I'm willing to bet the crowd Thursday will be more in favor of him than the broadcaster disrespectfully implied.