On the cover of the program for this Friday’s event at the US Open Tennis The organizers had decided to place an image of Ben Shelton and a phrase: “The future is now.” It was probably audacity when the 20 year old black manwho turned professional last year and has achieved his first semi-final of a majorhad in front of Novak Djokoviceven though the Atlanta left-hander looks traces of potential and have had a meteoric rise that on Monday he will place among the 20 best in the world.
The Serbian confirmed the audacity of that cover. In it match, Djokovic’s 100th in Flushing Meadows and his 47 in the round of the last four in a major, swept the inexperienced and erratic Shelton in two hours and 39 minutes by 6-3, 6-2 and 7-6 (7-4). That was of no use powerful bomb-dropping serviceattempts to attack or surprise, some daring blowsor even that the American broke for the first time in the eighth game of the third set, had a ball to go to the fourth set and forced the tie break… In the end, Shelton was left consumed under his own mistakes, his lack of experience and, above all, by Nole’s superiority and control.
The message left by the one who will be number 1 on Monday is very different from that of that daring cover: it has 36 years, It’s been 18 since he entered the circuit, 15 since he won his first major, but it’s not in the past. Anyone who stops betting on him now is wrong.
In search of more records
He is the winner this year in Australia and Roland Garros and champion three times in Flushing Meadows (2011, 2015 and 2018) the one who returns to the New York finalwhere it has already been 10 times, equaling Bill Tilden’s record. It will be his 36th fight for a great. And on Sunday at 4 in the afternoon (10:00 p.m. in Spain) will once again have an opportunity to extend the distance in his record of greats Rafael Nadal (22) and equal the record of 24 singles Margaret Court.
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There the winner of the semi-final will be measured between Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev. The Spaniard, like 20-year-old Shelton, but in his case it is no longer a promise but a reality, he has already shown that he is capable of challenging the Serb’s reign and at Wimbledon he not only won the title but also closed the door on the option to be able to complete the calendar Grand Slam (the four majors in one year). The Muscovite, number 3 in the world, was the man who left him without a trophy in his previous US Open in 2021 (last year he could not enter the country because he was not vaccinated against Covid).