Ernesto Escobedo says his Tour peers made him 'feel embarrassed' about his stutter

• Tennis News
• ATP Tennis

Ernesto Escobedo has opened up about his stutter as the Mexican claims some ATP players have made him "feel embarrassed" about his speech disorder. Escobedo, 26, is a former world No 67 and he has been on the Tour since 2014.

In a video message posted on his Twitter, Escobedo revealed there were many times when he would feel anxious just before giving an interview or conducting a press conference. Also, Escobedo revealed he lost some matches just because he didn't want to talk afterward.

“I normally never make videos like this, but there’s something I want to talk about. I want to talk about it for the first time. As most of you know, I have a stutter. It comes out when I’m in public, it comes out when I’m in big groups, it comes out when I have to talk in front of a lot of people.

I’ve been made fun of, I’ve been embarrassed about it. A couple of my peers on tour have made me feel embarrassed about it. To be honest, I’ve lost big matches in the past because I just didn’t want to talk after the match.

I just wanted to go home and just break down, that’s it," Escobedo said, via tennis.com.

Andy Roddick sends support to Escobedo

Roddick, the 2003 US Open champion, watched Escobedo's video. In his message, Roddick encouraged Escobedo to remain focused on himself and not give any attention to hecklers and negative comments.

"Dude @netoescobedo. Don’t listen to idiots who don’t fully understand what you’re going through. Keep grinding. Do your tennis, and invest time in people who benefit you and your interests. Ignore the others.

You have a fan in me brother," Roddick told Escobedo.

. Dude @netoescobedo …. Don’t listen to idiots who don’t fully understand what you’re going through. Keep grinding. Do your tennis, and invest time in people who benefit you and your interests.

Ignore the others. You have a fan in me brother — andyroddick (@andyroddick) May 27, 2023

Escobedo, who is now ranked at No 446 in the world, played a couple of tournaments in January and February. Escobedo was then out until this month, when he appeared in back-to-back ITF tournaments.