Home

Tennis

Amid a Whirlwind of Dating Rumors, US Open Champion Coco Gauff and Compatriot Ben Shelton Get Cheeky With Some GOAT Banter

Published 09/12/2023, 3:48 AM EDT

Follow Us

via Imago

Tennis involves rivalries, friendships, and a variety of ties. The WTA and ATP tennis players’ friendship has always been viewed differently, with each side making their own friends on their respective tours. But now the younger generation is ready to change the equation with their special friendship formula across the ATP and WTA. In a similar vein, talented tennis players Coco Gauff and Ben Shelton openly express their friendship both on and off the court.

Their friendship even sparked relationship rumors while they were competing in the US Open. But rather than reacting to the ludicrous dating rumors, the great pair recently engaged in some lighthearted G.O.A.T. banter.

Coco Gauff and Ben Shelton get into G.O.A.T. banter 

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

Recently, both American tennis sensations made it to the semifinals of the US Open, while Gauff even won her first title, making their country proud. After their spellbinding US Open journey, the 20-year-old tennis player took to his Instagram account to share some of his great moments from the US Open and wrote, “Back to the lab, See ya next year NYC.” 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Ben Shelton (@benshelton)

In that post, the 2023 US Open champion dropped a motivating comment for her friend. She wrote, “Only getting started,” followed by a fire emoji. In no time, Shelton replied to the comment with an ultimate statement for the new US Open Queen and stated, “@cocogauff ur the goat.”

Trending

Get instantly notified of the hottest Tennis stories via Google! Click on Follow Us and Tap the Blue Star.

Follow Us

However, that was not all. Just a day after this post, the ATP star also shared a video on his Instagram account focusing on his dialed-in victory celebration. The sixth-ranked tennis player also commented on the post and appreciated the victory celebration, saying, “hard.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Ben Shelton (@benshelton)

Looking at their friendship on the tennis court, there are a lot of rumors that they both might be in a relationship. However, while the tennis world only recently became aware of Gauff’s boyfriend, the 20-year-old Shelton is quite open about his relationship with Anna Hall. As the friendship between the two builds, a peek down memory lane reminds us of how they engaged in some fun banter, where the 19th-ranked tennis player gave the 2023 Citi Open champion a taste of her own medicine.

When Shelton pulled Coco Gauff’s leg

A few months back, during the Barcelona Open, Shelton shared a few pictures in which he was attempting different shots from different places on the court and wrote, “Hasta mañana.” While a lot of people found the caption funny, the 19-year-old Coco’s focus was on the ATP tennis player’s hair. She wrote, “hair so long it can’t even fit in the pic”.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Ben Shelton (@benshelton)

However, the 20-year-old wasn’t ready to take the jab lying down and gave his friend a taste of her own medicine with another cheeky dig. He replied back to the comment and stated, “urs goes down to ur ankles so I don’t wanna hear it”. The pair share a heartwarming bond – one that is rarely seen in the midst of all the rigorous competition in the sport.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

What do you think about their budding friendship? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

WATCH THIS STORY –  The Journey of Roger Federer to the Elite Billionaire’s Club

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Pratishtha Prakash

2,394Articles

One take at a time

Pratishtha Prakash is a Tennis writer at EssentiallySports. She has completed her Bachelor’s degree in Mass Media and Journalism from MIT ADT University, Pune. Being a sports enthusiast, she has been following varied sports like tennis, cricket and Esports from her childhood.
Show More>

Edited by:

Mitali Dey