Ben Shelton reveals what Flavio Cobolli said to him during tense exchange after their match at the Canadian Open

Ben Shelton and Flavio Cobolli were involved in a heated exchange at the net after their fourth round match at the Canadian Open.

Shelton continues to serve well in the big moments, after winning his second consecutive match in a third set tie-break.

The American also continued his push for one of his goals this season, with Shelton bidding to qualify for the ATP Finals for the first time in his career.

However, before Shelton could switch his attention back to tennis he had to clarify just what was said between him and Cobolli after their match.

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Ben Shelton explains what Flavio Cobolli told him after tense exchange at the net

Shelton beat the in-form Italian Cobolli, 6-4 4-6 7-6(1), and emotions were clearly high after the match.

Both players were involved in a lengthy exchange after the match, as it appeared that Shelton was unhappy with something that Cobolli had gestured while they were playing.

This conversation continued again as Cobolli was leaving the court, before both players shook hands.

When speaking about Cobolli after the match, Shelton was full of praise for how his opponent played.

“Yeah, I think I was really mentally tough tonight,” Shelton said in his post-match press conference. “I got to give credit to Flavio, he did a lot of things throughout the match that made it difficult.

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“I thought he played very well. He’s really fast, neutralizes a lot of things that I do well, and that’s always a tough matchup for me, so just happy to come through it.”

Then it got to the topic that was on everyone’s minds, as Shelton was questioned about what actually happened between him and Cobolli.

Shelton revealed that they had discussed it further in the locker room and that all was now well between himself and Cobolli.

“Yeah, we talked about it. He said it wasn’t towards me,” explained Shelton. “We’re good. We talked about it in the locker room, so I’m not going to answer any more questions about that. There’s no story, we’re good, that’s it, so, thanks.”

Ben Shelton helps American players achieve something for the first time in 21 years

As Shelton looks to put his disagreement with Cobolli behind him, he will now move on to his first ever quarterfinal at the Canadian Open.

The world number seven is not the only American still in the draw, with Taylor Fritz and dark horse Alex Michelsen also still remaining.

This is a rare feat for three American men to still be remaining at the quarterfinal stage of an ATP Masters 1000 tournament and actually has not been done since 2004.

At Indian Wells in 2004, when Shelton was still just one-year-old, Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick and James Blake all reached the quarterfinals.

Only Agassi was able to make it to the semifinals that year, something that Shelton will be now looking to do for the first time at an ATP Masters 1000 event.

Standing in the way of Shelton is Washington Open champion Alex de Minaur, who has now extended his winning streak to eight matches.

This will actually be a first-time meeting between Shelton and De Minaur, which will take place on Tuesday, August 5.

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