While Ben Shelton said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery when it came to Novak Djokovic putting the phone down on him during their US Open tie in reference to his celebration, his father Bryan Shelton saw it differently.
Speaking as part of the GQ piece which saw his son adorn the front cover, he said that is was poor form from such a great champion to mock him which he believes was the motive behind it.
“He wants to be loved so much, Novak…He wanted to mock Ben at the end. It wasn't something he was doing just to copy Ben. It was to mock him. & that's too bad, for that to come from such a great champion.”
At the time, Novak himself said that he loved it and thought it was original so he copied it. But in the case of Bryan Shelton, he saw it very differently.
But in terms of his son also adapting to not having the same form after his Australian Open run, he said it was all a learning process with his father now joining him on tour and leaving behind being a college coach.
“It’s how you take those experiences and learn from them. I think that he’s done that so well. Each loss only motivated him to work harder and to reflect and examine the parts of his game that he has to continue to improve,” he continued.
Ben Shelton’s dad on Novak Djokovic copying Ben’s phone celebration: “He wants to be loved so much, Novak…He wanted to mock Ben at the end. It wasn't something he was doing just to copy Ben. It was to mock him. & that's too bad, for that to come from such a great champion.”…
