Ben Shelton won the hearts of a lot of tennis fans with his semifinal run at the US Open. The young American was stopped by Novak Djokovic, but the exchange between the two did not end on the court.
Shelton's post-match victory celebration has become synonymous with his tennis persona, and he displayed it multiple times at the US Open. Shelton pretends his hand is a phone and hangs it up, which he said means he's “dialed in.”
After Djokovic defeated Shelton in a third set tiebreak to reach the US Open final, he did Shelton's celebration, something that did not sit right with the American's father and coach Bryan Shelton.
“He wants to be loved so much, Novak…” the elder Shelton said, via Kevin Nguyen. “He wanted to mock Ben at the end. It wasn't something he was doing just to copy Ben. It was to mock him. And that's too bad, for that to come from such a great champion.”
Djokovic said after the match and subsequent celebration that he loved Shelton's celebration and admitted that he stole it. Ben Shelton didn’t seem to mind it, though he didn’t see it happen in real time.
With the talent that Shelton possesses, it likely won’t be the last time he and Novak Djokovic meet at a Grand Slam. There doesn’t appear to be any beef between the American and the Serb, but perhaps Bryan Shelton's comments will spark something or someone in Djokovic's corner.
Djokovic went on to win his fourth US Open title and 24th Grand Slam, the most of any man in tennis history.
Follow Us
Subscribe