Every point matters in tennis, especially when superstars Carlos Alcaraz and Ben Shelton play a tight French Open fourth round match.
In the first game of the second set on Sunday, which followed a close first set tiebreak, Alcaraz and Shelton were in another intense rally. At one point, Alcaraz tried to reach to hit a shot from Shelton at the net. As he leaned over to reach the ball, his racket slipped out of his hand and went flying. The ball was still hit, though, and made it in across the net. The Court Philippe-Chatrier crowd went wild thinking Alcaraz miraculously won the point.
However, Alcaraz quickly approached the chair umpire to tell him that he didn't have the racket in his hand when the ball was hit. Therefore, the point should go to Shelton. What a classy move by the reigning French Open champion.
Too much class from Carlitos, who gave the point to Ben Shelton after telling the chair umpire he did not have his racket in his hand when contact was made with the ball 👏#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/ctCh7Lrrmq
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 1, 2025
When watching the replay, it's clear that Alcaraz was not holding the racket when the ball was hit, just like he said. Shelton was definitely confused, but seemed appreciative of his opponent for being honest, even when it meant he lost a point.
The crowd gave Alcaraz a loud applause after this admirable moment.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Carlos Alcaraz Applauded for Classy Move During French Open Match vs. Ben Shelton.
