When Ben Shelton was developing his tennis skills under the guidance of his father, former professional Bryan Shelton, he eagerly anticipated the chance to test himself against him.
However, his father was less enthusiastic about the idea.
“My dad never let me play against him,” Shelton shared with ESPN. Elaborating during an on-court interview at the Australian Open earlier this year, he added, “He would never let me play him, I don’t think he ever will let me play him. He probably still thinks he can beat me.”
In tennis, where a growing number of athletes are the children of former players, defeating a parent can be seen as a significant milestone. Yet, not everyone gets this opportunity, and some don`t even wish to compete against their mother or father.
Norway`s Casper Ruud, son of Christian Ruud (a former top-40 player and inspiration for Casper, who has reached three major finals and peaked at No. 2), experienced this competitive dynamic. The Ruuds disagree on the exact age Casper surpassed his father.
“I tend to say I was 15, and he would say, no, you were like 17, so we can`t agree on it,” Ruud told ESPN. “I would even say I was 14, but that was not regularly, like it was at 15, 16. I beat him once at 14.”
When they did play matches with Casper at 14, his dad even added a financial incentive.
“The bet was kind of like, if my dad beat me, 6-0 and 6-1, I would owe him $20. If it was 6-2, it was neutral and every game over 6-2 was like $10 per game for me. So if it was 6-3, it was 10 bucks and 6-4 was 20 bucks for me. And then somehow, one weekend, I was able to beat him 6-3, it was a bit out of nowhere and he didn`t play well, so that`s what I remember. He did beat me again, but from 15, 16, was when I started to really win.”
There was no sense of guilt for Casper when he began consistently winning. “His curve was going this way (down) and mine was going this way (up). So at some point we would cross paths and physically, he`s not where he was as a player. So that was just a question of time, I guess.”
2025 Wimbledon Men`s Odds
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Carlos Alcaraz | +120 |
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Jannik Sinner | +160 |
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Novak Djokovic | +450 |
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Taylor Fritz | 16-1 |
Maria Sakkari is among the few female players with a professional tennis-playing parent. Daughter of former top 40 player Angeliki Kanellopoulou, Sakkari remembers playing games and tiebreaks against her mother when she was very young.
“I remember a few summers that we would train together,” Sakkari told ESPN at Wimbledon. “She was still playing at the time. Then at some point she broke her knee, so she stopped playing. It was a pretty bad injury.”
For Sakkari, her mother`s understanding of the pressures she faces was more valuable than the idea of beating her.
“I think she really enjoys the fact that I became better than her and that we had the chance to train a little bit together in the past,” Sakkari said. “But it`s also very important that she keeps her role more of a mother. She gives me advice, but that`s it, and which is great, because then we have a great balance as a family.”
Canadian Denis Shapovalov was coached by his mother, Tessa Shapovalova (a former Soviet Union national team player), for many years. Shapovalov stated they never truly played matches against each other.
“We did some point situations and stuff like that, especially when I was much younger,” Shapovalov told ESPN at Wimbledon. “There`s a couple of YouTube videos where I`m a little kid and I was playing against her. She was kind of tapping the ball to me. It was fun to play against her but we never played sets and stuff like that. But for sure, I always felt like she could beat me.”
Seb Korda, son of former Australian Open champion Petr Korda and Regina Rajchrtova (also a former top 30 player), is still seeking his first win against his parents.
“I have never beaten either of them,” the American admitted. “That`s the problem. Last time I played my dad I think I was 13 years old and he either bageled me or double-bageled me, and we never played again. I`m sure if we played now, I would hope to win. But I just don`t want to play him. He`s forever my idol, and it would be weird to play him in a match and beat him.”
2025 Women`s Wimbledon Odds
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Aryna Sabalenka | +190 |
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Elena Rybakina | +300 |
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Iga Swiatek | +650 |
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Madison Keys | 9-1 |
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Amanda Anisimova | 12-1 |
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Mirra Andreeva | 12-1 |
Jack Draper`s father, Roger Draper, while not a pro, was a competent player and later CEO of the Lawn Tennis Association. “It probably wasn`t until I was about 12, 13 where I could beat my dad,” said world No. 4 Draper. “For my brother it was a little bit later.”
Beyond head-to-head victories, Draper emphasized the benefits of growing up in a competitive sporting household.
“Especially having an older brother as well who has always beaten you,” he noted. “Whether it`s ping pong or tennis or anything, it really sort of builds that competitor in you until you beat them. For instance, my brother, I think I played him once, and he beat me. He`s going to always have that over me.”
Taylor Fritz`s mother, Kathy May, reached the world`s top 10. For young Fritz, beating his mom was significant, but surpassing her career-high ranking was an even bigger accomplishment.
“I think I could start beating my mom around the age of like 14,” Fritz recalled. “I could beat my dad before that because he`s pretty old. I think it was [more of] a big deal to beat her career-high ranking and say that I`m the best player in the family.”
