“I copied him!” Novak Djokovic explains why he hit Ben Shelton with the ‘phone celebration’ that sparked a huge controversy in the tennis world

Djokovic thought Shelton's celebration was very original.

“I copied him!” Novak Djokovic explains why he hit Ben Shelton with the ‘phone celebration’ that sparked a huge controversy in the tennis world

(L) Ben Shelton; (R) Novak Djokovic (Via Open Source/Imago)

Novak Djokovic revealed why he hit Ben Shelton with the ‘phone celebration’ after his win against the American in the semi-final. After his dominating win over Shelton, the Serb gave the youngster a taste of his own medicine. The phone call celebration by Djokovic was a copy of Shelton’s celebration over Frances Tiafoe in the quarter-final of the US Open.

The social media world did not react well to Shelton’s celebration. They called the 20-year-old cocky and said that he needed to be humbled. This was exactly what happened when he lost to the Serbian Great in straight sets. However, Djokovic seemed to rub salt in the wound when he made the same phone call celebration following his commanding victory and surge into his 36th Grand Slam final.

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When asked on the topic in a press conference, the 23-time Grand Slam champion replied, “I just loved Ben’s celebration. I just thought it was very original. And I copied him.” He also cheekily admitted that he stole Shelton’s celebration. While the American seemed to get a lot of negative comments on social media for this action, Djokovic had quite the reverse reaction. Fans resorted to social media to say that Djokovic ‘humbled the kid’ real quick.

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https://twitter.com/TheTennisLetter/status/1700301715239772603

Djokovic defeated Ben Shelton and advanced to the final match of the US Open 2023. This will be his tenth US Open final and 36th Grand Slam final. He will be facing Daniil Medvedev once again.

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Novak Djokovic on the final step to create history

Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic (Image via ATP Tour)

Djokovic, with the final match at Flushing Meadows, will be rewriting record books once again. Not only will this match serve to be the 36th Grand Slam final for the Serb, but it also holds another special meaning to him.

With this match, Novak will have the opportunity to be the first male tennis player in history to clinch a record 24 Grand Slam singles titles, While the Serb does not have much luck at the US Open compared to other Grand Slam events, he will still be a force to recon in the current situation.

However, his final opponent, Daniil Medvedev, will stand as an obstacle to stop the Serb from achieving this feat. The last time two players met at the US Open was at the final match of the 2021 edition. This match saw Medvedev winning the title for the first time, with the Russian defeating the Serbian Great in straight sets. Goes without saying that neither of these players will be underestimated by the other.

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