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Tennis star Ben Shelton spoke out against the Australian Open’s post-match interviewers Wednesday, citing several instances he deemed disrespectful to players.
Shelton ended his press conference by bringing up the issue unprompted. “One thing that I just want to say before we’re done, I’ve been a little bit shocked this week with how the players have been treated by broadcasters,” he said.
The 22-year-old brought up four instances he found problematic:
- Broadcaster Tony Jones from official Australian Open partner Channel 9 chanted over singing Novak Djokovic fans Friday that the 37-year-old player is “overrated” and a “has-been,” and suggested the tournament “kick him out” (seemingly a reference to when the player was deported ahead of the 2022 tournament for not being vaccinated against COVID-19). Djokovic refused to do a post-match interview with Channel 9 on Sunday, saying the broadcaster “decided to mock Serbian fans and made insulting and offensive comments towards me.” Both the news channel and Jones issued public apologies Monday as Djokovic requested.
- After 19-year-old American Learner Tien upset Daniil Medvedev, the post-match interviewer John Fitzgerald told him, “19-year-olds are not meant to be that good,” to which Tien responded, “I don’t know what to say to that.” The interviewer also mentioned he used to live next to Tien’s California hometown: “So I know where you live, by the way.” Shelton called the interview “embarrassing and disrespectful.”
- Following Shelton’s win over 38-year-old Gaël Monfils, who is also Black, the interviewer told Shelton, “He’s almost your dad,” to which the player responded, “Was that a Black joke?” The interviewer responded, “I’m not sure, let’s not go there.”
- In the post-match interview after Shelton’s quarterfinal win Wednesday, the interviewer brought up how he will play against either defending champion Jannik Sinner or Australian Alex de Minaur in the semifinals. “The crowd are gonna be on the other guy’s side for that, aren’t they?” the interviewer asked. Shelton responded that he understood fans would root for those players but said, “I know I’ve got a few people out in the crowd who are going to be pulling for me, too.” In his press conference, Shelton reflected on the exchange: “It may be true, but I just don’t think [that’s] a comment that’s respectful from a guy I’ve never met before in my life.”
A spokesperson for Tennis Australia, which runs the Grand Slam, did not immediately respond to an off-hours request for comment.
“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,” said Shelton, who is ranked No. 20. “I feel like there’s just been a lot of negativity and I think that’s something that needs to change.”
Shelton will face reigning champion Sinner in the semis Friday. The tournament winner gets roughly $2.17 million.
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