‘Remove It!’ – Stubbs Furious As Ben Shelton Mishap Results in Him Bleeding During Montréal Win

Ben Shelton cruised past fellow American Learner Tien with a 6-2, 6-3 win to reach a second consecutive final at the Canadian Open on Wednesday, August 12. Despite the straightforward victory, the defending champion was forced to call for a medical timeout after injuring himself while overrunning the court in the sixth game of the second set.

The incident prompted a strong response from Serena Williams’ coach, Rennae Stubbs, who believed the obstacles at the edge of the court contributed to the mishap.

Ben Shelton Suffers a Scare As He Crashes Into Ad Board During Montréal Semifinal

After notable wins over Jenson Brooksby, Zizou Bergs, João Fonseca, and Jakub Menšík, Shelton faced Tien in Wednesday’s semifinal. The 23-year-old entered the contest trailing 0-2 in their head-to-head record but turned the tide in emphatic fashion, securing his first win over Tien, who struggled to match Shelton’s intensity.

The most dramatic moment of the clash came when Shelton, leading 6-2, 4-1 with Tien serving, sprinted back from the net to chase down a lob. He managed to return the ball but sent it wide before tripping over a mat and crashing into the electronic advertising board, suffering a couple of cuts that drew blood.

Former doubles World No. 1 Stubbs expressed her displeasure over the incident, pointing to the mat covering the cables at the edge of the court as the culprit.

“Why???? Why is there a mat on the back of the court???????? Please dear god remove it!” she wrote on X.

“They should have cables under the LED. Crazy,” she added.

Shelton played one more point, but with Learner Tien leading 30-0 on serve, he called for medical assistance. The umpire granted an extended medical timeout as the medical staff treated the injury, helping Shelton cover the wound and stop the bleeding.

The defending champion won three consecutive points when play resumed, only to lose the game. He held serve thereafter, wrapping up the match in one hour and 24 minutes.

In his on-court interview, Shelton insisted that the injury did not hamper his game. “After the five-minute break, I played four of the best return points that I played so far today. So, not feeling anything, just some stinging from whatever this [expletive] is that he put on to make the bleeding stop. But other than that, super happy with the performance.”

MORE: ‘Alcaraz and Djokovic Do This Too’ – Tennis World Defends Ben Shelton Amid Backlash Over Montréal ‘Demand’

The American, who had won just one Masters 1000 match this year before his Montréal campaign, is chasing his fourth title of the season. He has yet to drop a set on his way to Thursday’s final against another American, Brandon Nakashima.

This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.