"I'm close friends with Coco Gauff" - Ben Shelton shares his thoughts on state of American tennis at Australian Open

Ben Shelton is one of many Americans on the tennis Tour, and he confirmed that he's good friends with all of them. Tennis can be lonely because you are alone on the court. It is no wonder that camaraderie exists between players from the same country.

That's true for Americans, who are well-represented on the top Tour. There are many players on both the men's and women's sides, and Shelton said in his post-match press conference that he's generally friends with all of them, though two of them are closer friends than the rest:

"I'm friends with most of them. Definitely close friends with Coco and Chris Eubanks. We've been watching pretty closely to see if Banks will get in as a lucky loser. He was third, and one guy pulled out."

Shelton and Eubanks have taken their friendship to the courts, playing doubles a few times. He's never played with Coco Gauff, but competitions like the United Cup should allow that to happen sometime in the future. The next Summer Olympics will be in Los Angeles, which could be another chance for them to play together, or maybe the US Open this year. In any case, Shelton follows what his fellow Americans do on the courts.

"Obviously, I was watching Navarro and Stearns today. Two college players, and yeah, that was an absolute war. I love to see where American tennis is at. I love watching Reilly Opelka being back and playing great. There are probably too many American versus American first-round matches than I would have liked, but it is what it is," Ben Shelton added.

Most of Shelton's fellow countrymen have made good starts at the event, though some of those American vs American matches eliminated an American, which he's not a fan of.

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Ben Shelton wins Australian Open opener

It was in Melbourne that Ben Shelton first made headlines. In 2024, the American teenager had a fantastic run to the quarterfinals, and he's made a winning start in 2025. The opponent was fellow American Brandon Nakashima, but Shelton overpowered him without many problems.

Nakashima is a solid player but, for some reason, doesn't do well in Australia, as this year proved with another early exit. On the other hand, Shelton loves to play Down Under because the conditions favor his style of play. Next up for him will be Pablo Carreno Busta, an experienced veteran.