Ben Shelton is poised to feature in an all-American Houston final, marking the culmination of a challenging week on home soil. Despite the challenges, Shelton is ready to give it his all in the championship match to win Houston, as, ironically, he has a family history with the competition that dates back to before he was even born.

Not only does this complete a circle for the 21-year-old, connecting him to his father’s participation in the competition years ago, but he recently opened up about how his father, who is a coach to him, sometimes trash-talks about the victory at River Oaks.

“he doesn’t put it in my face” – Ben Shelton reveals his father’s trash-talk over the Houston title

For the 21-year-old, reaching the ATP Houston final means a lot, starting from the fact that this is his first ATP Tour final on clay and his second overall. While he awaits Frances Tiafoe in the title round, one more connection dates back to a decade before even he was born. As a tennis player himself, Shelton’s father won the River Oaks International exhibition tournament championship in 1992, and now his son is ready to repeat his achievement.

After winning the semifinal match, the 15-year-old tennis player was asked in an on-court interview if his father often talked about his own past triumphs while making fun of him for not having one of his own. While he laughed off at the question, he stated, “Nah, he just, he makes comments here, like when I took the title here. but no, he doesn’t put it in my face; maybe a little somehow here and there.” 

In addition, he made fun of how his father sometimes tried to talk about the days of his victory, but not directly to him. If the 21-year-old achieves victory in this ATP event, he will successfully qualify to complete his first-ever father-son double at River Oaks, acknowledging the fact that his father is also a tennis player, currently his coach.

However, did you know last year he achieved a similar victory to his father? They became the fourth father-son duo in ATP history to win titles following his American’s Tokyo triumph. Not only that, but last year his father also talked about how the young American tennis sensation has improved a lot on the tennis court, sharing his take as a father and a coach.

Shelton’s father talks about his son’s improvement 

Last year, during the US Open, senior Shelton talked about how there are a lot of things that his son has worked on, starting from being patient on the court to dealing with the technicality of the game. He stated, “He’s learned his offense has to be really good on that type of surface in order to execute against the best players in the world. He’s starting to mature a little bit more as a player.”

In addition, as a coach, he is always by the American tennis sensations’ side, at every tournament, showing his full support and, at the same time, setting an example of being a positive influence on his son, in the tennis world.

Nevertheless, what are your thoughts on Shelton reaching the ATP event’s final? Do let us know in the comment section below.

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