Ben Shelton got more than he bargained for at the Swiss Indoors as a fan proposed to him mid-match.
The world No. 23 was a game away from victory in his first-round match at the Swiss Indoors when a fan shouted out, asking Shelton to marry her.
It didn’t go down too well with the American, who awkwardly laughed and covered his face. He later reacted to the video on social media.
After winning last week’s Ultimate Tennis Showdown exhibition event, Shelton was back in action at the ATP 500 in Basel. The sixth seed faced Tomas Etcheverry on Tuesday afternoon.
There was some controversy in the first set when Shelton benefitted from an umpire blunder, with a call mistakenly going his way. But he made the most of it, taking it 6-3 and racing into the lead in the second set.
As Etcheverry served to stay in the match at 3-5 down, one fan made the most of the silence before the point to try her luck with Shelton. “Ben, will you marry me?” they called out.
The rest of the crowd cracked up before the 22-year-old turned his head to see where the proposal came from. Shelton laughed sheepishly and briefly put his head in his hand before preparing to return.
The American went on to win 6-3 6-4 and later reposted a clip of the moment to his Instagram story, adding a crying face. Shelton now awaits either Stan Wawrinka or Adrian Mannarino in the second round.
Shelton wasn’t happy with organisers at the Swiss Indoors when he saw one of his rivals was made to play two matches in 24 hours. The world No. 23 beat Frenchman Ugo Humbert in the final of the UTS exhibition in Frankfurt, Germany on Sunday.
Humbert was back out on the court in Basel for his opening match the following afternoon. And he was made to work. The No. 5 seed needed two hours and 29 minutes to get past qualifier Jerome Kym.
“Guy plays last night in a different country and they play him first on Monday,” Shelton commented on an ATP Tour Instagram video of Humbert’s match, adding a facepalm emoji.
Humbert’s girlfriend Tessah Andrianjafitrimo, who is also a player and sometimes coaches him, thanked Shelton for pointing out the brutal schedule. Another one of their rivals, Arthur Fils, agreed.
“Crazy schedule. But @ugohumbert in indoor is something else,” he wrote. But Humbert made light of the situation. Replying to both Shelton and Fils, he wrote: “Always keep the smile… and madness.”