WATCH: Ben Shelton dials in for celebration that has been copied by Novak Djokovic and Achraf Hakimi
Ben Shelton claimed the big scalp of Jannik Sinner at the Shanghai Masters on Tuesday and he pulled out his signature telephone celebration afterwards.
The rising American star followed up his US Open performance where he reached his maiden Grand Slam semi-final with another excellent run as he is into the quarter-final of an ATP Masters 1000 tournament for the first time in his career.
Just a day after celebrating his 21st birthday, Shelton continued the happy vibes as he defeated the in-form Sinner – who was fresh from defeating Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev en route to his China Open title – 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) in the round of 16.
After the post-match handshake with Sinner and the chair umpire, the youngster whipped out the telephone celebration, but there was a tweak to the one he used at the US Open.
Instead of slamming the phone down like he did after beating Frances Tiafoe at the US Open, he opted not to “hang up” this time – perhaps a sign that he has unfinished business at the Shanghai Masters.
See for yourself…
Shelton’s celebration made headlines not just at Flushing Meadows in September, but around the sporting world. Tennis great Novak Djokovic copied the celebration when the two met in the semi-final of the US Open.
“I just love Ben’s celebration (smiling). I thought it was very original, and I copied him. I stole his celebration (smiling),” Djokovic said after the match.
READ MORE: Ben Shelton’s father hits back at Novak Djokovic over ‘mocking’ US Open celebration
And it is not just the 24-time Grand Slam winner who “stole” the celebration as Italians Lorenzo Musetti and Fabio Fognini have also dialled in as well as PSG and Morocco star Achraf Hakimi.
“You saw Djokovic do it, you saw Musetti do it, you saw Fognini do it. The guys at Laver Cup were doing it whenever I won a big point,” Shelton said recently.
“It’s even gone outside the sport I saw, was it Hakimi? Maybe the footballer. I think he did it in one of his games, And I’m getting tagged on social media all the time, people win a game or win a match and they’re doing this and hanging up the phone. I mean, it’s pretty funny for me.”
The 29th-seeded Shelton will no doubt hope to once again pull out the famous celebration on Friday when he takes on compatriot Sebastian Korda in the last eight of the penultimate ATP Masters 1000 event of the year.
The winner of the all-American clash will face either Fabian Marozsan or 26th seed Hubert Hurkacz in the semi-final.
