Following Team World’s victory over Team Europe on Sunday, tennis fans expressed their displeasure with Team Europe’s dismal showing at the 2023 Laver Cup.
In the 2023 event in Canada, Team World defeated Team Europe for the second year in a row to win the Laver Cup. Over the course of two days at the Rogers Arena, the team of John McEnroe, Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Tommy Paul, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Ben Shelton, and Francisco Cerundolo completely demolished the opposition.
Team Europe had its only victory in the tournament when Casper Ruud defeated Tommy Paul on Day 2. After defeating Andrey Rublev and Hubert Hurkacz of Europe in straight sets on Sunday, the team of Tiafoe and Shelton secured the title.
Tennis fans on the internet were angry by the unequal outcomes. A supporter made reference to the absence of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer by writing: “I think it is the worst Laver Cup ever. No legends, no FUN.”
Another one wrote: “Worst ever Laver Cup edition and it’s not even close to 2021, which was also a beatdown. At least that year there were 6 super tiebreaks, but now 8 from 9 matches were in straight sets. I don’t know if was about the names attending or what, but just such an underwhelming event.”
Another supporter criticized Bjorn Borg, the coach of Team Europe, for his management style and proposed Roger Federer as a substitute. He wrote: “Congratulations to Team World. But this is almost a “disgrace” for Europe I think Bjorn Borg has to question himself whether his nomination of players this time was the right decision? He should resign and let RF as Iniator be the captain of “Team Europe” next year.”
Ben Shelton in 2023
Now the world no.19 (career-high), Ben played his last match on the 22nd of September when he beat world no.44 Arthur Fils 7-6(4) 6-1 in the round robin in the Laver Cup (draw).
Currently, during this year Shelton has a composed 20-23 match record. Ben Shelton’s most significant performance of the current year was reaching the semifinal in the Cagliari Challenger and at the U.S. Open.
He is also scheduled to play in Tokyo (Rakuten Japan Open). The main draw will start on the 16th of October.
Frances Tiafoe in 2023
Currently the world no.11, the American played his last match on the 23rd of September when he beat world no.16 Hubert Hurkacz 7-5 6-3 in the round robin in the Laver Cup (draw).
This season Frances has achieved an overall 38-17 win-loss record. Frances conquered 3 titles in 2023 in Australia, Houston and Stuttgart.
He is also scheduled to play in Tokyo (Rakuten Japan Open). The main draw will start on the 16th of October.
Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe squared off only 1 time. Their actual head to head record is 1-0 for Shelton. When they played, Ben Shelton won 6-2 3-6 7-6(7) 6-2 in the quarter in New York (U.S. Open) on the 5th of September 2023.
You can watch the highlights in the following video.
Taylor Fritz in 2023
Currently the world no.8, Fritz played his last match on the 23rd of September when he defeated world no.6 Andrey Rublev 6-2 7-6(3) in the round robin in the Laver Cup (draw).
At the moment, during this season Fritz has a 50-20 record. Fritz has won 3 titles in 2023 in Australia, Delray Beach and Atlanta.
Tommy Paul in 2023
Now the world no.13 (career-high), Tommy played his last match on the 23rd of September when he capitulated to world no.9 Casper Ruud 7-6(6) 6-2 in the round robin in the Laver Cup (draw).
Presently, during this year the American has a 40-24 win-loss record. Tommy Paul’s most significant achievement of this year was reaching the final in Acapulco, the Aix En Provence Challenger and Eastbourne.
Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul played each other 7 times. The head to head is 4-3 for Paul. The last time they fought against each other, Tommy Paul won 6-3 6-7(2) 7-6(2) in the semifinal in Acapulco (Abierto Mexicano Telcel) on the 3rd of March 2023.
In the following video you can watch the highlights.