- The 2023 US Open men’s singles finals feature will feature Novak Djokovic
- Djokovic defeated Ben Shelton in the semi-finals of the match
- The Serbian won in straight sets 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 over 20-year-old Shelton
The 2023 US Open men’s singles finals feature will feature Novak Djokovic and Russian tennis star Daniil Medvedev.
Djokovic advanced to the finals of this year’s US Open after defeating American tennis star Ben Shelton in their Friday match.
The Serbian won in straight sets 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 over 20-year-old Shelton who had earlier expressed his hope in defeating Djokovic.
This was Shelton’s sixth semi-final match in a major Grand Slam and he was optimistic of matching Djokovic’s skills and mental toughness.
However, the 36-year-old Serbian advanced to the finals and caused a stir with his ‘dialed in’ taunt over Shelton after the match.
Novak Djokovic. Photo/NBC Sports
After conquering what he humorously referred to as a minor hiccup, brought about by the tension to regain his balance, Djokovic sealed a commanding straight-set triumph.
With this victory, he notched his remarkable 10th final appearance at Flushing Meadows and his 36th at all major tournaments, equalling an impressive record.
Djokovic, displaying a touch of playful jest, decided to imitate the young player’s “Hang up the phon!” celebration gesture.
Subsequently, Djokovic gestured towards his temple and emphatically thumped his chest. As the match concluded, he was met with an unsmiling Shelton at the net, where they exchanged the most perfunctory of handshakes.
Shelton always celebrates his victories via a phone dialing pose which Djokovic staged after winning the match and it stirred a lot of talk in town.
Asked for a response over this, he said that he only saw it after the match and he has no hard feelings about it because Djokovic has a right to celebrate his win in whichever way.
“I didn’t see it until after the match. I don’t like when I’m on social media and I see people telling me how I can or can’t celebrate,” the Atlanta-born tennis player told the press.
He added: “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.”
One year following Djokovic’s inability to journey to the United States for the US Open due to his lack of COVID-19 vaccination, the 36-year-old Serbian stands on the brink of clinching his fourth title in New York and securing his 24th Grand Slam championship overall.
Novak Djokovic celebrates winning his match against Alexandre Muller. Photo/ Loop Jamaica – Loop News.
In this season, he has reached the finals of all four major tournaments, claiming victory at the Australian Open in January and the French Open in June.
Should Djokovic emerge triumphant and clinch the title this time, he would surpass Serena Williams and break the tie for the most major singles championships in the Open era.
He says he gives each of his final matches the best he can because it could be the last Grand Slam he ever plays.
At 36 which makes him the oldest player on Tour yet, Djokovic says that the fact that he doesn’t know how many more Grand Slam finals he has makes pushed him to success by default.
“Well, fact is that, at 36, every Grand Slam final… could be the last one. So I think that I probably value these occasions and opportunities to win another Slam more than I have maybe 10 years ago,” he told Mail Sports.
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