Fans theorise why tennis legend told Ben Shelton ‘I don’t care’ after historic US Open moment
Fans are questioning what caused Andy Roddick to say “I don’t care” to Ben Shelton, after their warm exchange was picked up faintly following the latter’s US Open post-match interview.
Shelton advanced to the US Open final after defeating fellow American Francis Tiafoe, by a scoreline of 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-5. His post-match interview with tennis icon Roddick, in which the ESPN broadcaster was heard saying “I don’t care” to the 23-year-old, has left fans theorising about their exchange.
Fans theorise why Andy Roddick told Ben Shelton “I don’t care” after historic American serve
As Shelton left the ESPN desk, he warmly embraced Roddick while the pair exchanged words. The 44-year-old's microphone then caught him saying “I don’t care" in response to something hardly audible from the US Open finalist.
Level-headed fans were quick to point out that Shelton could be heard faintly apologising for not responding to previous messages from Roddick. One wrote: “[Shelton] said, ‘Thanks for the text, I’m sorry I didn’t respond,’” which was quickly supported by other replies.
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However, on an evening in which Shelton was adjudicated, initially, to have recorded the fastest serve in Grand Slam history — a whopping 158mph bomb versus Tiafoe in the third — other fans interpreted Roddick’s words differently.
Known for his wit, humour and remarkable tennis knowledge, Roddick — who won the 2003 US Open and is the most-recent American male to win a Grand Slam — was theorised by some social media users to have been dryly joking about Shelton’s serve speed.
Roddick was known in his playing days for possessing the game’s fastest serve, famously striking a 155mph ball at Vladimir Voltchkov in the Davis Cup, back in 2004.
With that speed, the American recorded the quickest serve in tennis history, and held it for seven years until Ivo Karlovic delivered a 156mph bomb in 2011, also in the Davis Cup.
Humorous interpretations of his exchange with Shelton are certainly incorrect — Roddick is one of the game’s most supportive voices for the ATP Tour, particularly his fellow Americans — regardless, Shelton’s serve was later corrected to have not been the quickest in Slam history, or faster than Roddick’s.
Ben Shelton’s serve speed corrected after ‘breaking’ Andy Roddick’s record
Hawkeye and USTA confirmed that Shelton’s serve, which initially clocked 158mph on the IBM calculator, was actually 144mph.
That puts the American far off of Roddick’s once-record speed; however, Shelton did enjoy a remarkable serving performance versus Tiafoe, bombing 20 aces to his fellow countryman’s three.
The Slam finalist also struck 75% of his first serves in, while Tiafoe managed just 54%. It is worth noting that Shelton’s opponent was able to return the 144mph strike, but quickly lost the point.
The 23-year-old will now take on Alexander Zverev in the US Open final, with his opponent having previously won Roland Garros in 2026, and lost to Jannik Sinner in the Wimbledon final.
The German was once widely renowned as one of the greatest players to have never won a Slam; now, he could bring home two in 2026 with victory against Shelton.
If the American prevails, he will become the first Black male to win a Singles Grand Slam since Yannick Noah in 1983, and the first to win the US Open since Arthur Ashe.
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Shelton will play in the stadium named after Ashe, who won three Slams — the Australian and US Opens, and Wimbledon — during his 11-year playing career from 1969 to 1980.
Kedar Bayley