Novak Djokovic secured a place in Sunday’s final at Flushing Meadows, moving him one step closer to a record-tying 24th Grand Slam singles victory. With a powerful performance, he defeated 20-year-old American player Ben Shelton by 6-3 6-2 7-6 in straight sets.
Djokovic provided a clear explanation following a heated celebration after his victory against Ben Shelton in the US Open semifinals.
The Serbian copied Shelton’s celebration after defeating Frances Tiafoe in his quarterfinal two days earlier, pretending to hang up an imaginary phone, exactly as Shelton had done on Wednesday.
Some said that Djokovic disrespected his young opponent by imitating him right after the loss during the celebration. But when questioned about it after the match, he gave a brief justification. Djokovic said: “I just love Ben’s celebration. I thought it was very original. I copied him. I stole his celebration.”
Shelton acknowledged that he did not notice the gesture until after the game and claimed he had no issues and tried to take it as a compliment.
Shelton expressed his remarks after the match: “I didn’t see it until after the match. I don’t like it when I am on social media, and I see people telling me how I can or can’t celebrate. If you win the match, you deserve to do whatever you want. As a kid growing up, I always learned that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.”
Ben Shelton in 2023
Ranked world no.47, Shelton played his last match on the 8th of September when he capitulated to world no.2 Novak Djokovic 6-3 6-2 7-6(4) in the semifinal of the U.S. Open (draw).
This year Ben has a 19-23 match record. Ben Shelton’s most significant performance of the present season was getting to the semifinal in the Cagliari Challenger and at the U.S. Open.
Djokovic at the U.S. Open, ranking, and results in 2023
Now ranked no.2, Novak has managed to achieve a 44-5 win-loss record in 2023. Djokovic is now competing at the U.S. Open where he bested the world no.84 Alexandre Muller 6-0 6-2 6-3, the world no.76 Bernabe Zapata Miralles 6-4 6-1 6-1, the world no.38 Laslo Djere 4-6 4-6 6-1 6-1 6-3, the world no.105 Borna Gojo 6-2 7-5 6-4, the world no.9 Taylor Fritz 6-1 6-4 6-4 and the world no.47 Ben Shelton 6-3 6-2 7-64.
Novak Djokovic will come up against the world no.3 Daniil Medvedev in the final on Saturday at 4:00 pm on ARTHUR ASHE STADIUM. Their current record is 9-5 for Djokovic.
The Serbian clinched 4 titles in 2023 in Adelaide, Australian Open, French Open and Cincinnati. The Serbian was the runner-up in Wimbledon.
Novak won 95 titles in his career: 51 on hard courts, 19 on clay courts, 17 on indoor courts and 8 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Ben Shelton and Novak Djokovic squared off just on 1 occasion. Their current record is 1-0 for Djokovic. When they played, Novak Djokovic won 6-3 6-2 7-6(4) in the semifinal in New York (U.S. Open) on the 8th of September 2023.
You can see them in action in the following highlights.