Ben Shelton sides with Novak Djokovic as he slams ‘disrespectful’ broadcaster comments

Ben Shelton has become the latest player to criticise “disrespectful” broadcaster and interviewer comments in the wake of Novak Djokovic’s criticism of Channel 9.
World No 7 Djokovic was handed a public apology by Channel 9 and broadcaster Tony Jones this week after skipping a post-match on-court interview in round four.
The Serbian skipped the interview in protest over comments made by Jones, who had described Djokovic as “overrated” and a “has-been” on live TV.
Djokovic received widespread support in the aftermath of the incident and, following Jones’ apology, did participate in an on-court interview after beating Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday.
However, Shelton has now criticised questions he faced during post-match interviews in Melbourne.
After facing Gael Monfils in the fourth round, the 22-year-old was asked about the Frenchman being old enough to be “almost your dad”.
While, after Wednesday’s quarter-final win over Lorenzo Sonego, he was asked about the possibility of having no crowd support should he go on to face Australia’s Alex de Minaur in the semi-final.
The 21st seed took aim at both those questions, alongside addressing a widely-criticised interview with Learner Tien following his upset win over Daniil Medvedev in the second round.
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He said: “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.
“I noticed it with Learner Tien in one of his matches. I think when he beat Medvedev his post-match interview, I thought it was kind of embarrassing and disrespectful that interview.
“There are some comments that have been made to me in post-match interviews by a couple of different guys, whether it was: ‘Hey, Monfils is old enough to be your dad. Maybe he is your dad.’
“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, [that] may be true, but I just don’t think the comment is respectful from a guy I’ve never met before in my life.
“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.”
Shelton defeated unseeded Sonego 6-4, 7-5, 4-6, 7-6(4) to reach his first Australian Open semi-final, and just his second Grand Slam semi-final overall.
The American, who will break back inside the top 20 of the ATP Rankings next week, will face world No 1 and defending champion Jannik Sinner in Friday’s semi-final.
Sinner defeated eighth seed de Minaur 6-3, 6-2, 6-1 on Wednesday.
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