America’s
Ben Shelton had an interesting situation to deal
with in an exhibition event. The 22-year-old partnered with
Emma Navarro as
they faced Australia’s Alex de Minaur and Katie Boulter. He was set to serve
for the match and was interrupted as
Tommy Paul took off his warm-up suit.
That left everyone laughing in the arena, including Shelton. The
video was released on the social media platform X — previously known as
Twitter. All five players are set to feature at the Indian Wells. The nearly two-week-long event will feature some of the biggest names from the world of tennis who will compete to secure the ultimate prize.
Shelton is coming into the competition after being featured in the Mexican Open, where he was knocked out after losing in the second round to
Belgium’s David Goffin in straight sets with a score of 7-6, 6-3. De Minaur’s
last appearance was in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championship, where he was knocked
out after losing in the first round to Croatia’s Marin Cilic with a score of 6-2,
3-6, 6-3.
Paul’s last appearance was also in the Mexican Open, where his journey ended in the second round, where he was forced to withdraw because of a fitness concern. On the other hand, Boulter will be making her first appearance
in professional tennis after the Australian Open. In that competition, she was knocked
out after losing in the second round to Veronika Kudermetova with a score of
7-6, 2-6, 6-2. Navarro will be coming to the competition in high spirits as she
recently lifted her maiden WTA 500 title. She won the Merida Open after beating
Emiliana Arango in the final in straight sets with a score of 6-0, 6-0. This year,
in the men’s singles category, Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz will be defending his
title, whereas in the women’s singles category, world number two Iga Swiatek
will be defending her crown.