John McEnroe Hits Ben Shelton With Honest Advice On Where He’s Going Wrong

John McEnroe’s tennis expertise was on full display during a Laver Cup match on Saturday, when the American tennis legend noticed something about Ben Shelton that may be holding the 21-year-old back from taking his game to the next level.

Last weekend in Berlin, the world number 17 faced Carlos Alcaraz – and although he put up a solid performance against the four-time Grand Slam champion – he was eventually defeated in straight sets: 6-4 6-4. Throughout the match, there were chances for both sides. But the difference was that the world number 3 converted them, while the American could not.

And during a changeover, the cameras picked up McEnroe’s conversation with Shelton. At the start of his message, the former seven-time major winner began by complimenting the 2023 US Open semifinalist, before adding that he sometimes lacks discipline on every shot. He also added that there are points where it’s just not necessary to go all-in.

“I believe you’re going to be in the top five in the world, okay? But you want to get there. 95 out of 100 players wouldn’t have even returned that serve you just hit. But you have to be disciplined on every shot, okay? You can’t think, ‘The point should have been over, I’m going for it.’ You have to play it a bit safer, that’s all,” the 65-year-old told the world number 17.

McEnroe added more about Shelton in the press conference

Just ahead of the 2023 US Open, the 21-year-old decided to officially turn pro. And shortly after making that decision, he reached his first Grand Slam semifinal at Flushing Meadows – winning his first ATP title in Tokyo – and broke into the top 20. Since then, he has won another title in Houston and reached a career high of No. 13 last August.

Although Shelton has yet to have a really strong showing at the Slam or Masters level this year, McEnroe believes he is heading in the right direction and that with the right attitude and mindset he can become a top player in the future.

“I see Ben in the top five in the world if he keeps growing. I think he can do it. He wants to do it. He’s worked on it. He’s better than he was a year ago, more complete. But I think he’ll be up there with those guys, and that would be great. You know, I think American tennis is getting closer. You saw Taylor in the final. Frances has been in a couple of semi-finals. Ben has been in the semi-finals. We’re going to make the breakthrough. I believe Ben is going to make a breakthrough in the next few years,” the legend explained.

McEnroe has been a fan of Shelton for some time

Over the past year, the former world No. 1 has spoken highly of the 21-year-old’s talent on several occasions. At Wimbledon, the American reached his first round of 16 before losing to world No. 1 Jannik Sinner in three sets. However, some would argue that it was still a great run and that he could have easily gone further had he not been playing against the top seed.

Meanwhile, other Americans fared better as Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul reached the quarterfinals at The Championships. Reflecting on that, McEnroe said his pick for the deepest run was Shelton, before revealing that he expects the promising American to unlock his full potential in the next few years.

“Well, I was hoping it would be Ben Shelton. He’s made some great strides and for us in America it would be huge. He wasn’t just focused on tennis when he was 10, he played American football, was a great athlete and went to college for a few years. Hopefully he’ll peak later, maybe in his 20s, 25s, 35s,” the former seven-time Slam champion said on Good Trouble with Nick Kyrgios.

After making an impressive US Open semi-final in 2023 in one of his first Slam tournaments, the 21-year-old has seen some big predictions made about him. But earlier this year he tried to play down his own expectations, saying he was just taking it one day at a time.

“I feel like no matter what you say in the press, someone’s going to say, ‘Oh, you overachieved or underachieved.’ So I’m going to keep my results-based goals between me and my team… I don’t have any goals in my head yet that I really want to get to. I feel like I don’t want to put a limit on myself and what I can achieve. I just want to take things one step at a time and see where I am at the end of this year,” Shelton explained earlier this year.