Andy Roddick has issued a bold take on Carlos Alcaraz’s ex-coach Juan Carlos Ferrero joining Ben Shelton’s team. Ferrero and Shelton are set to start working together in the offseason, with the former having left Alcaraz’s camp in December last year. According to Roddick, Ferrero accepted Shelton’s offer to eventually get back at Alcaraz.

Ferrero and Alcaraz’s split ahead of the 2026 tennis season was controversial. Many wondered why Alcaraz chose to part with a coach who had guided him to six Major titles, eight Masters 1000 crowns, and 10 other ATP Tour-level honors. Eventually, it was reported that the separation stemmed from failed negotiations and unaligned expectations during talks for a new contract ahead of the 2026 season.

On Sunday, November 1, Alcaraz registered his 28th ATP Tour-level title triumph at the Vienna Open, and later on the same day, it was confirmed that Ferrero and Shelton will be joining forces ahead of the 2027 tennis season. Now, Roddick, the former World No. 1 American who won 32 singles titles on the ATP Tour during his playing days, including the 2003 US Open, has weighed in on the sensational development.

Speaking on an episode of his Served podcast, Roddick opined that Ferrero has an ego and that it is unsurprising given the Spaniard’s own illustrious tennis career. It’s worth noting that Ferrero himself was a World No. 1 in his prime, and famously won the 2003 French Open. The American said:

“Listen, Juan Carlos, you don’t get to a French Open champion. You don’t get to number one in the world without some ego, right?”

Roddick went on to claim that Ferrero wants to exact some sort of revenge on Alcaraz through Shelton, adding:

“He’s going, ‘Okay, which one in the holster can we use to go after the guy who fired me?’ You know, Shelton’s as good of an answer as any.”

Ben Shelton produced one of the performances of his career against Carlos Alcaraz at this year’s US Open

At the 2026 US Open, Shelton was among the home hopes to become the first American man since Roddick to win a men’s singles title at a tennis Major. Shelton strung together a series of impressive results to reach the quarterfinals, where he locked horns with Alcaraz, the defending champion.

The American and the Spaniard produced a memorable five-set thriller, with Shelton ultimately coming out on top with a 6-7(5-7), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6(10-7) win to end Alcaraz’s title defense. Shelton went on to reach the final, but had to settle for second-best in the end, with Alexander Zverev winning the title.

As things stand, both Alcaraz and Shelton are in Paris for the year’s last Masters 1000 event. They are also set to feature at the year-end ATP Finals in Turin.