"They had a little statistic on the screen, he gave me a hard time about it" - Ben Shelton on his father's reaction to his 147mph serve at US Open

Ben Shelton has stated that his father, Bryan, pulled his leg after he registered the fastest serve at the 2023 US Open.

On Friday, September 1, Shelton took on Aslan Karatsev in the third round of the New York Major. The American came through the match with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-2, 6-0 scoreline, during which he served 26 aces, including the fastest serve (147mph) of the tournament.

At his post-match press conference, Shelton revealed that his father was not a fan of his big-hitting serves and said that he pulled his leg for looking up at the screen on the stadium when they showed statistics about the tournament's fastest serves so far.

"Dad is always upset when I go for the bombs. He was saying to me after the match, he's like, I know you looked at the clock, looked right at it after," he said.

"They had a little I guess statistic up on the screen of fastest serves of the tournament. He's like, I know you were looking up at that, too, to see you were number one on the leaderboard. He gave me a hard time about it," he added.

When asked about how mastering his serve has affected him, Shelton stated that he feels mentally stronger now.

"I think it's a little more mental. Obviously the mental affects the physical. For me, it's getting into a state where I feel fluid in my service games, like just the rhythm of how I'm walking up to the line. It's kind of hard to describe, but I'm kind of in this flow state when I'm serving well. I'm not even thinking. Then I realize at the end of the game that, Wow, I put that together well," he explained.

"Maybe not focusing so hard on how hard I'm hitting the serve or really trying to hit a perfect spot or even go for an ace. The more calm, relaxed, and kind of free I am in my service games, I serve a lot better. I've been holding serve a lot lately. I knew that I had another gear that I could go to that I've seen in myself before. I saw a little bit of that in myself today," he added.

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Ben Shelton one of four Americans in US Open 4R, becomes first NCAA men’s champion to reach Round of 16 since 2006

Ben Shelton at the 2023 US Open.

American men have shown good form at the 2023 US Open, with four players reaching the fourth round.

Ben Shelton is joined by the likes of American No. 1 Taylor Fritz, World No. 10 Frances Tiafoe, and 14th seed Tommy Paul in the Round of 16. They could be joined by another compatriot if wild card Michael Mmoh manages to defeat Jack Draper.

Meanwhile, Shelton has become the first National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) men’s singles champion to reach the fourth round of the New York Major since Benjamin Becker in 2006.

Shelton won the 2022 NCAA singles title by surprising everyone to defeat San Diego's August Holmgren 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in the final.