Rajeev Ram hits back after Mardy Fish social media jab: “I don’t think he’s okay” 

Rajeev Ram is taking the high road after fellow American Mardy Fish took shots at him on social media during the build-up to the US Open.

It all started two weeks ago, when Jannik Sinner retired mid-match from the Cincinnati Open final due to illness, and then withdrew from US Open mixed doubles with Katerina Siniakova—leaving a spot open in the new 16-team draw.

Read More: US Open forges new world with revamped mixed doubles tournament

Tennis Channel's Jon Wertheim suggested on X (formerly Twitter) that 41-year-old Ram should replace him as a wild card, but many were surprised to see a sharp rebuke from Fish, 43:

“How bout another actual tennis player?” Fish wrote.

The comment sparked backlash, with many questioning the animosity and pointing out the irony given Fish’s 2021 Netflix documentary Breaking Point, in which he opened up about his own mental health struggles in sports.

Speaking on an episode of The Changeover Podcast, Ram admitted he was “shocked” by the comments and called out what he saw as hypocrisy.

“It is really strange… I mean, the guy that positioned himself as the mental health advocate, and rightfully so, is taking shots at another player—as you said, a compatriot—from behind a keyboard,” Ram said.

“No matter what I might think about somebody personally, I could never see myself doing that in a million years.”

Ram also expressed concern for Fish’s wellbeing: “I mean, I hope he’s okay. I don’t think he’s okay, if he’s doing that kind of thing, but I hope he finds a way to get better from that.”

He reflected on their strained relationship, but stopped short of revealing details.

“He’s actually somebody I looked up to for a really long time,” Ram said. “He’s a couple years older than me… He had a great career, was a Top 10 player, was our Davis Cup captain for a while.

“We haven’t spoken to each other in three years, since… summer or fall of 2022.”

It was in the fall 2022 when Fish, as Davis Cup captain, controversially left Ram—then the world No. 1 in doubles—off the U.S. team. Fish instead selected Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe and Tommy Paul, along with Jack Sock as the doubles specialist. The decision backfired when the U.S. crashed out in the quarterfinals—losing the deciding doubles rubber against Italy.

Moments after the loss, which came on Thanksgiving Day, Ram seemed to add salt to the wound with an X post: “How’s everyone’s Thanksgiving going?”

Read More: Happy Thanksgiving... or not? U.S. Davis Cup team members join Twitter squabble after elimination

Now, Ram says he doesn’t want to escalate things further.

“I don’t really have much more to say, other than it’s a super strange thing,” he said. “It’s not something that shows he’s doing that well… He must be in a pretty tough spot if he’s resorting to doing that stuff.”

It is really strange… I mean, the guy that positioned himself as the mental health advocate, and rightfully so, is taking shots at another player from behind a keyboard. Ram on Fish feud

Fish, who reached three Grand Slam quarterfinals and peaked at No. 7 in the world in the early 2000s, retired in 2015 after a years-long battle with anxiety and depression. He served as U.S. Davis Cup captain for three years before stepping down in January 2023.

Ram is a six-time Grand Slam champion, winning four titles in men’s doubles with Joe Salisbury—including three straight at the US Open (2021-2023), along with two mixed doubles titles with Barbora Krejcikova.

On Wednesday, Ram and Nikola Mektic, the No. 11 seeds, were eliminated from the US Open men’s doubles after falling to No. 14 seeds Michael Venus and Yuki Bhambri, 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-3.