Ben Shelton’s Playful Jibe at Reporter After USA’s Strong Start at FIFA World Cup: “I Wonder If He’s Still Yapping”

Ben Shelton found the perfect chance to take his revenge on a reporter for mocking USA’s soccer team for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Co-hosts USA got off to a strong start as they defeated Paraguay 4-1.

Shelton had to take his revenge. He took to his Instagram story and took a playful jibe at that reporter.

I wonder if that reporter that was clownin me in Paris still yappin.

Ben Shelton wrote

Check out his post here:

So here’s what happened in Paris. During a press conference, an Austrian reporter asked the American ace how invested he would be in the World Cup before adding, “The U.S. team looks really bad“.

Shelton asked him where he was from, to which the reporter revealed that he was from Austria and praised the team. But when Shelton told him he had no idea about the Austrian team, the reporter told him, “You should.” Upon hearing this, Shelton roasted him, saying, “I was thinking that at first you were French, and I would have given you that, because they’re very, very good. Now I’m, like, really, dude?”

USA’s soccer team sits in the 15th spot on the rankings table, while Austria sits in the 25th spot. Team USA is placed in Group D alongside Paraguay, Turkey, and Australia. Austria is placed in Group J alongside Argentina, Algeria, and Jordan. Defending champion Argentina sits at the top of the rankings table.

Back to Shelton again, his French Open run ended in a disappointing fashion. After defeating Daniel Merida Aguilar, Shelton lost to Raphael Collignon in straight sets in the second round.

Before arriving in Paris, Shelton lifted two titles this season, one of which was his career’s second clay-court title in his third final on the surface at the Munich Open. He defeated this year’s French Open runner-up Flavio Cobolli in straight sets. The other title was the Dallas Open, which he won by beating Taylor Fritz.

Ben Shelton beats Taylor Fritz at the Stuttgart Open

Ben Shelton stopped Taylor Fritz from defending his title at the Stuttgart Open. On Sunday (June 14), Shelton clinched a 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 win over his compatriot, winning his career’s first grass-court title. It was Shelton’s sixth singles title in his eighth final. The win helped Shelton improve his head-to-head record over Fritz to 3-1. Also, this was the first time they played on grass.

Before this event, Shelton had never made it to the final of a grass tournament. It was also the first time Fritz lost a final on the surface, as before this tournament, he had played five finals, winning all, including at the Eastbourne International four times.

Fritz has now lost both the finals he has played so far this season to Shelton. Both American aces will next be competing at the Halle Open, the main draw of which is set to start on June 15. Shelton is the third seed, while Fritz is the fifth seed.

Alexander Bublik will be competing as the defending champion (he defeated Daniil Medvedev last year). This year’s French Open champion Alexander Zverev will be the first seed, while runner-up Flavio Cobolli will be playing as the sixth seed.

The biggest grass-court event, the Wimbledon Championships, is set to start on June 29. Fritz is a one-time semifinalist here, reaching the stage last year before losing to eventual runner-up Carlos Alcaraz (who will skip the tournament due to a wrist injury).

Shelton, on the other hand, has never made it past the quarterfinals. He also reached the stage last year and lost the match to eventual champion Jannik Sinner.

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