Ben Shelton announced he has a girlfriend with a picture on Instagram, which drew reactions from players such as Coco Gauff and Frances Tiafoe.
In a recent interview with Vogue, Shelton said he was not in a relationship and wanted to focus on working on himself before making the commitment and effort needed to be involved with someone romantically.
Either Shelton was hiding his relationship, or it happened very swiftly after the interview with Vogue was done. Regardless, the 2025 Australian Open semifinalist revealed in a picture that he is dating a fellow athlete.
Shelton posted a picture with U.S. soccer player Trinity Rodman. Although the ATP star did not explicitly state that the pair were dating, the nature of the picture and the replies it received made it evident that they are.
Coco Gauff was among those who commented that the Instagram post was a hard launch of their relationship. 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens, currently out with a foot injury, said the same in her reply.
Frances Tiafoe also chimed in, acknowledging that the relationship had reached a place where they were ready to go public on Instagram. Tiafoe and his girlfriend are known for becoming friends with Taylor Swift.
Athletes face a challenging conundrum when it comes to making relationships visible and known to fans. They must balance wanting to interact with their fans while also maintaining privacy.
Coco Gauff, at least for the moment, takes the latter approach in her relationship. Although the WTA Finals champion has spoken about her boyfriend, she is yet to reveal his face on social media.
By contrast, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa are not shy about expressing their love for each other. They have posted about their relationship on social media several times and have done magazine interviews together.
Tsitsipas spoke during the 2025 Indian Wells Open about him and Badosa cooking together, a new hobby he has taken up after becoming inspired by his girlfriend, who had more pre-existing knowledge in that area.
On the court, Shelton hopes to build on a quarterfinal run in Indian Wells at the 2025 Miami Open. He lost in California to the eventual champion Jack Draper, who had an incredible run to glory at the Masters 1000 event.
Shelton could face American ATP world No. 1 Taylor Fritz in the fourth round after they were put in the same section in the Miami Open draw. Fritz was also defeated by Draper at the Indian Wells Open.
There are fascinating American matchups in the women’s draw at the Miami Open. 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin’s victory against two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova set up a round-of-64 clash with Coco Gauff.
After an exceptional few months that included her WTA Finals triumph, Gauff’s form has dipped since her defeat in the Australian Open quarterfinal to Paula Badosa. The world No. 3’s most recent loss was to Belinda Bencic in the round of 16 in Indian Wells.
