John McEnroe’s advice to Ben Shelton: “You’re gonna be top-five in the world”

John McEnroe gave Ben Shelton a reality check after his defeat to Carlos Alcaraz at the Laver Cup. The 7-time Grand Slam champion had a conversation with the 21-year-old player, pointing out what he still needs to work on to make the definitive leap on the Tour.

Shelton has been showing his potential for a couple of seasons now, going from being an unknown quarterfinalist at the 2023 Australian Open to becoming one of the most talented players on the Tour, including his appearance in the 2023 US Open semifinals. He is currently ranked World No. 17.

“I believe you’re gonna be top five in the world, okay?” McEnroe said on the Central Court bench in Berlin. “But you want to get there. 95 out of 100 players wouldn’t even have returned that serve you just hit,” he added, referring to the match against Carlos Alcaraz.

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The Spaniard showed his superiority and secured a straight-sets victory, 6-4, 6-4. Although Shelton’s serve was dominant throughout the match, McEnroe wants the young star to focus more on extended rallies: “But you gotta be disciplined on every shot, okay?” McEnroe added. “You can’t be like, ‘The point should’ve been over, I’m going for broke.’ You play it a little safer, that’s all.”

After the match, John McEnroe commented in the press conference: “I see Ben in the top five in the world if he keeps progressing. I think he's got the ability. He wants it. He's worked at it. He's better than he was to me a year ago, more complete,” he explained.

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“But I think he's going to be up there with those guys, and that would be great. You know, I think American tennis is getting closer. You saw Taylor [Fritz] was in the final,” McEnroe added. “Frances [Tiafoe] has been in a couple semis. Ben's been in the semis. We're going to make the breakthrough. Ben, I believe, is going to make a breakthrough in the next couple of years.”