Novak Djokovic bested Ben Shelton in three sets at the 2023 US Open to reach his tenth final at Flushing Meadows, and it was his celebration that stole the show.
In the first two sets of the match, the 36-year-old Serbian seemed to be cruising, not giving his opponent many chances to dramatize the match. However, in the third set, Shelton deleted a one-break deficit, twice, and the set had to be decided in a tie-break.
Despite the drama and heroics from the 20-year-old American, Djokovic was able to win the match in three sets to reach his 36th Grand Slam final. Yet, it was the moment after the victory that everyone was talking about.
During his journey to the semifinal, Shelton made a certain celebration very popular, one where he put his hand to his ear, gesturing a phone, which he then hangs up. The American also explained his iconic celebration, but he didn't get to do it against Djokovic.
But fans at the Arthur Ashe Stadium still got to see it, but surprisingly, from Djokovic. The Serbian used his opponent's celebration, and the American didn't really like that, resulting in a pretty cold handshake after the semifinal match.
Fans on social media immediately started speculating about different things, including the reason why the 36-year-old Serbian opted to do the celebration. We'll probably never know that, but one thing is for sure, Djokovic loves to play in an atmosphere like this.
"First of all, you guys were amazing, thanks for coming out, appreciate your support, for both players. These are kind of matches and occasions that I still thrive on that inspire me to wake up every day. Trying to work as hard as the young guys. Grand Slams are the ones that count the most in our sport. I knew prior to the quarterfinals and semifinals that I’m gonna play American players. This is the kind of atmosphere we all like to play in."
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