Tim Henman delivers his honest opinion on Ben Shelton hiring Juan Carlos Ferrero as his new coach

Ben Shelton continues to cause reaction after announcing he will be working with Juan Carlos Ferrero next year.

Shelton released a statement confirming he will be coached by Ferrero next year, who will join his team alongside his father, Bryan.

This is Ferrero’s first tennis coaching role since he shockingly split from Carlos Alcaraz in December last year after seven years working together.

Shelton and Ferrero have caused a huge reaction after announcing their collaboration, and now former world number four Tim Henman has given his verdict on the news.

Tim Henman claims Ben Shelton hiring Juan Carlos Ferrero is ‘great’

Since announcing he will be working with Ferrero, Shelton has gone on to have a deep run at the Paris Masters, and after his quarter-final victory over Tommy Paul, Henman gave his verdict on the collaboration.

Speaking live on Sky Sports, Henman called Shelton hiring Ferrero ‘great’, but admitted he was intrigued by how it would work when highlighting their differing playing styles.

“It’s obviously a great addition,” said Henman. “Juan Carlos was a brilliant player himself, a Grand Slam champion and world number one. He had an amazing coaching career as it were, with Carlos Alcaraz, we were all surprised when that ended.

“I think it’s great. He has a fantastic relationship with his father both on and off the court but when you have someone who can come in on different weeks to keep it very fresh, I think it’s a great appointment.

“It’s interesting because they are such different styles of players. I know Ferrero is not playing any more, because he’s a coach, but the way he will see the game for Ben Shelton will be interesting to see how they gel when that relationship starts.”

Juan Carlos Ferrero’s record as a coach with Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev

This will be Ferrero’s third high-profile coaching role on the ATP Tour, having previously coached both Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev. These collaborations had very different results, with Ferrero having a public fallout with Zverev after working together for just seven months.

Zverev was still able to win two titles, including a Masters 1000 tournament, under Ferrero, but that is incomparable to what Alcaraz achieved while being coached by the former world number one.

In the seven years being coached by Ferrero, Alcaraz won a total of 24 titles, including six Grand Slams, and reached the summit of the ATP rankings as world number one.

Ferrero will likely be hoping for more results like he had with Alcaraz when he joins Shelton’s team ahead of the 2027 season.

Shelton reached his first Grand Slam final at the US Open earlier this year, and Ferrero will now try to bring something extra to help him become the first American male singles champion since Andy Roddick in 2003.