Ben Shelton one of tennis's rising stars recently found himself at the center of a controversy that wasn't of his own making after his thrilling third round clash with fellow American Francis tifo at the 2024 US Open a reporter's misinterpretation of Shelton's remarks sparked outrage among fans before we dive into the details make sure to hit that subscribe button and tap the Bell icon so you don't miss out on any of our latest tennis content and if you're a fan of Ben Shelton or just love the drama of the sport smash that like button it was a five set epic 4 to6 7 - 5 6 to 7 5 6 - 4 6 - 3 that had fans on the edge of their seats in the end tifo came out on top brilliantly neutralizing Shelton's booming serve and proving why he's one of the best in the game the win also allowed tifo to avenge his quarterfinal loss to Shelton from from the previous year but the real story unfolded during the postmatch press conference Shelton was asked about his exchange with tifo at the net after the match the 21-year-old praised tifo saying he was excited for the rest of his US Open campaign he referred to tifo as a guy like him highlighting his admiration for his compatriot Shelton said and I quote I thought he played lights out today that was one of the things you've got to be happy for a guy and congratulate especially a guy like him when he's playing the way he's playing but what was meant as a compliment the media quickly Twisted into something controversial a reporter followed up with Shelton questioning what he meant by the phrase a guy like him Shelton ever the gentleman clarified that he was praising tfo's positivity and good nature he explained that tiao is always smiling fun to be around and never has a negative look on his face but fans weren't having it they quickly took to social media accusing the reporter of trying to stir up drama where there was none salute to both guys and that reporter needs to go one fan wrote another added who is this reporter find out and fire them Ben Shelton's Class Act didn't go unnoticed fans are starting to appreciate not just his game but also his personality one fan even wrote Ben's starting to grow on me a little bit love is game starting to come around to the personality that was a class presser and of course this incident brought back memories of Novak jokovic mocking Shelton's celebration after their 2023 wi open semi-final Clash fans are still divided on that moment with some criticizing jokovic for his actions so what do you think was the reporter out of line or was it just a case of misunderstanding let us know your thoughts in the comments below and don't forget subscribe to our channel for more tennis news like this video if you support Ben Shelton and share it with your friends to keep the conversation going