US Open: Ben Shelton says ‘imitation is flattery’ as Novak Djokovic copies his phone celebration after thumping win
- Dialled-in Djokovic disconnects Shelton’s dream run in semis, twisting the knife as he copies young American’s favoured on-court celebration
- Daniil Medvedev shocks defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, denying tennis fans the blockbuster finish to grand slam season they hoped to see
A dialled-in Novak Djokovic disconnected Ben Shelton’s dream US Open run in the semi-finals on Friday, twisting the knife as he copied the young American’s favoured on-court celebration after clinching it in three sets.
The veteran Djokovic held off a late-match surge from the 20-year-old to reach his 10th US Open final, prevailing 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 before he mimed answering the phone – and hanging up – to subvert the viral post-win gesture that Shelton has used in New York.
“I just love Ben’s celebration. I thought it was very original, and I copied him. I stole his celebration,” Djokovic, who will face Daniil Medvedev in Sunday’s final, told reporters with a grin.
Medvedev shocked defending champion Carlos Alcaraz 7-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 on Friday, denying tennis fans the blockbuster finish to the grand slam season they had been hoping to see.
Shelton said he had not seen Djokovic’s move until after the match – but added that he would not tell another opponent how to celebrate.
“I think if you win the match, you deserve to do whatever you want,” said Shelton.
“You know, as a kid growing up, I always learned that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so that’s all I have to say about that.”
The move is one that Shelton borrowed himself from three-times 110 metres hurdles world champion Grant Holloway, who seemed pleased to have his celebration brought to New York as he reposted photos and footage of Shelton on social media.
“It’s kind of like I’m saying I’m dialled in,” Shelton explained earlier in the tournament, when asked about the celebration.
The big-hitting Shelton earned legions of fans from the home crowd, even as he knocked out two higher-ranked Americans – Tommy Paul and Frances Tiafoe – in the fourth round and the quarterfinals, respectively.
“The two weeks as a whole was a good run for me. A lot of positives to take away for the rest of the year and going into next year,” said Shelton.
A final involving former-US Open champions Medvedev and three-time winner Novak Djokovic on Sunday is one of obvious high quality but not the next chapter in tennis’ hottest rivalry of Djokovic and Alcaraz that has had the sport buzzing.
Djokovic did his part, but Alcaraz could not crack the third-seeded Russian, who would bend but not break.
There will be some juicy subplots to Sunday’s final with Djokovic hunting a fourth US Open that would see him equal Margaret Court’s record haul of 24 majors and, along with it, a good measure of revenge on Medvedev.
The last time Djokovic and Medvedev clashed at the US Open was the 2021 final, where the Russian claimed his only major so far and denied the Serb a rare calendar grand slam.
“[Djokovic] is always better than the previous time he plays,” Medvedev said. “For example, I beat him in the US Open final, he beat me in Bercy [Paris Masters] in a great match. Carlos beat him in Wimbledon, he beat him in Cincinnati.
“Novak is going to be his best version on Sunday, and I have to be the best-ever version of myself if I want to try to beat him.
“Novak, when he loses, he’s never the same after. It’s just a different mentality. So, I have to use it knowing that he’s going to be 10 times better than he was that day. And I have to be, if I want to still beat him, 10 times better than I was that day.”
Alcaraz said he planned to “grow up” after his loss.
“I thought that I am a better player to find solutions when the match is not going in the right direction for [me],” the 20-year-old Wimbledon champion said. “But after this match I’m gonna change my mind. I’m not mature enough to handle these kind of matches. So I have to learn about it.”
China’s Wang Xinyu and her partner Hsieh Su-wei of Taiwan fell short in the women’s doubles semi-finals. They were beaten 6-1, 7-6 by Gabriela Dabrowski of Canada and New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe, who will face Russia’s Vera Zvonareva and Laura Siegemund of Germany in the final.
