What a shocker it has been for Team USA at the Davis Cup Finals! A tournament known for its unpredictable twists has once again delivered, but not in a way American fans had hoped. Despite boasting a legacy of 32 titles—the most in Davis Cup history—Team USA’s recent decisions have left everyone scratching their heads. The spotlight? The surprising choice to field Ben Shelton over Taylor Fritz in a crucial match. And now, adding fuel to the fiery debate is none other than Serena Williams’ former coach, Rennae Stubbs, who hasn’t held back in expressing her disappointment.

The quarterfinal encounter for the Americans started on a negative note with Ben Shelton witnessing a shocking defeat against Australian player Thanasi Kokkinakis, who won the match in three sets, 6-1, 4-6, 7-6. However, Fritz soon came to the rescue and reignited the hope for his team after registering a dominant win against Alex de Minaur in straight sets 6-3, 6-4. But what unfolded later was rather surprising and bizarre as the team’s captain Bob Bryan decided to send Tommy Paul along with Shelton for the doubles match against Matthew Ebden and Jordan Thompson, which they eventually lost 6-4, 6-4. This seems to have upset Stubbs who criticized the move by the team. 

Taking to her X account, Stubbs wrote, “Doubles specialists that are major champions, more then not, will beat great singles players that haven’t played together before.” Remember, Paul and Fritz emerged as major forces in the doubles category this year and won the bronze medal in the Paris Olympics. However, Bryan decided to keep Fritz on the sidelines and preferred Shelton over him surprising many. Stubbs, meanwhile, continued to express her confusion over the call. 

When a user commented on her post questioning, “How does Bob Bryan make this mistake?” Stubbs was quick to share her thoughts. “There has to be a reason. Whether it was the fact that the doubles guys were not in form? I don’t know,” she shared. And this surprise is also valid given the remarkable grit that Fritz has depicted throughout the season. 

The 27-year-old won two titles, at Delray Beach and Eastbourne, as against Shelton’s one which he bagged in Houston. Besides, he also emerged as the runner-up player in the US Open and the ATP Finals proving his mettle. Yet, Team USA took a surprising call to rest him during the crucial match, which eventually cost them the tournament. And interestingly, Stubbs is not the only person to have expressed disappointment. 

Soon after the match started, Coco Gauff’s ex-coach Brad Gilbert took to his X account and shared similar sentiments. “Gutsy call 📞 from Rusty went with TK4  who barely 😥 won any match the last 3 months over Pop and it paid dividends in the 1st rubber I like Fritz Carlton in the 2nd match, should come down to doubles,” he wrote. But what is more fascinating is the fact that it is not just the people outside the courts who are expressing being surprised, as Mathew Ebden, the Australian player who helped her team to reach the semi-finals, made similar statements. 

Mathew Ebden made true admission about seeing Ben Shelton in the decider match

Mathew Ebden and Jordan Thompson played remarkable tennis against American stars Ben Shelton and Tommy Paul. They continued to lead from the front and dominated the entire match. While the second set witnessed a tie-break at 4-4, they depicted immense composure and marched to victory. But interestingly, the decision to send Shelton over Fritz surprised even the Aussies as confirmed by Ebden after the match.

When quizzed about his reaction to seeing Shelton and Paul, Ebden said, “We were expecting the other pair, we knew they’ve got incredible players who can play doubles. We were ready, a slight adjustment obviously, some huge-serving singles players than the doubles craft maybe.” But the victory made him immensely happy irrespective of the opponents. 

“But it was just as big a challenge as any. out here, final live match, just to play with Jordan here was real fun. Following what Kokk did, unfortunately Alex went down. But what a day. So fun, so happy.” For now, it would be interesting to see if more voices would join the likes of Stubbs and Gilbert to express their disappointment over Team USA’s call.