Taylor Fritz warns against 'crazy expectations' on Ben Shelton, saying they are 'really dangerous'

Taylor Fritz has warned against placing “crazy expectations” on fellow American Ben Shelton, saying he was “probably hurt” by similar pressure on him when he was younger. Fritz started the defence of his Indian Wells title with a hard-fought 4-6 6-4 6-3 win over 20-year-old Shelton at the weekend. Ad Shelton has been a revelation over the last six months, breaking into the top 50 after reaching the quarter-finals of the Australian Open.

ATP Indian WellsWhen is Murray v Draper and Raducanu match? Murray pays tribute to rising star11 HOURS AGO Currently ranked at No. 41 in the world, Shelton has a huge serve and his development was described as «massively exciting» by Tim Henman earlier this year. Asked about Shelton’s long-term potential after their first meeting on tour, Fritz described him as «really good» but also urged some caution.

«I think it's a really dangerous thing that people do putting crazy expectations on young American players. “He's really talented. He's super dangerous if he's playing well, just with the serve and the weapons that he has.

You make one mistake on my serve, make one mistake on my serve in the first set and drop it, and the set is over. He's serving way too well. “He definitely has a really bright future.

He's got a super explosive game and he has a lot of stuff that he can still — a lot of stuff that he will improve on.” Asked whether sky-high expectations are just an issue in tennis or across other sports, Fritz added: “It happens in every sport, I think. There is a lot of expectations put on people. “I just speak to it, because for me, I felt like it was something that I maybe wasn't ready for when I was 18, 19, and I think I was too young at the time to, I guess, properly deal with it.