Novak Djokovic, seeking a 24th Grand Slam title to equal Margaret Court’s all-time record, qualified for his tenth US Open final on Friday by beating American Ben Shelton (47th) 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (7/4).
The 36-year-old Serbian, assured of becoming world No. 1 again, will try to win his fourth trophy at Flushing Meadows on Sunday against defending champion Carlos Alcaraz (N.1) or 2021 winner Daniil Medvedev (3rd).
On Friday, the roof of the Arthur-Ashe court was closed preventively due to the risk of rain throughout the day and the air conditioning ensured a playable temperature. Against all expectations while facing an American, Djokovic was loudly applauded upon his entry on the court and during the player presentations.
From the start, Shelton was very aggressive, particularly on Djokovic’s second service balls. But the Serbian dominated the exchange and managed the break to lead 4-2. He confirmed at 5-2 on an ace. Then, after missing four set points on Shelton’s serve, the Serb concluded on his fifth, on his serve. In total in this first set, the American only won five points on Djokovic’s serve, including three in the last game, and lost the only break point he created.
Djokovic dominated the second set even more clearly by twice taking his opponent’s serve, his main weapon, without having to defend a single break point himself. Starting at 2-2, Djokovic won six games in a row to pocket the second set and pull away 2-0 in the third.
While Djokovic seemed to have won without any further resistance, Shelton nevertheless broke and regained confidence with some huge forehands and serves (including one at 145 mph, or 233 km/h). The Serb nevertheless served to win at 6-5 but, despite a match point, he allowed Shelton to break the break by sending a smash into the net. Then he had another little scare in the tie-break where, leading 5/1, he let Shelton come back to 5/4 before concluding. A victory in three sets which was well worth the “telephone” celebration dear to his evening opponent in the previous round.
Djokovic thus reached his tenth final in New York where he won three times (2011, 2015 and 2018), equaling Bill Tilden’s record. He also brings his record for Grand Slam finals to 36, now five lengths ahead of Roger Federer. He has also now reached the finals of the four Majors for the third time in the same season (after 2015 and 2021).
