cnn
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Novak Djokovic reached the US Open final after a dominant 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (7-4) victory against young American Ben Shelton.
Shelton, playing in his first Grand Slam semi-final, came out firing but couldn't put much of a glove on the always impressive Djokovic.
The World No. 2 was at his best during the clash and controlled the proceedings against Shelton from start to finish.
“These are the kind of matches and occasions that I still enjoy and they encourage me and inspire me every day to try to work as hard as the young guys,” Djokovic said during his on-court interview after the victory.
“The Grand Slams are the ones that motivate me the most to play my best tennis, to perform my best tennis.”
The Serbian's first break came in the sixth game of the match and after going up 4-2 in the first set, Djokovic never looked back and won the first set 6-3.
This momentum continued into the next set, where Djokovic ran away to win the second set 6-2 and take control of the match inside Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Being two sets down against Djokovic is a place no tennis player wants to be and despite being behind, Shelton will be proud of his efforts in the final set.
The World No. 47 worked hard, making it difficult for Djokovic to advance to the final, and was even able to break the 23-time, two-time Grand Slam winner's serve during the final frame, forcing a tiebreaker.
Djokovic eventually took the third set in the tiebreaker and celebrated by imitating his opponent's celebration, which involves holding a phone to his ear and then hanging it up, something that has become a trademark of Shelton's victories during his career in the US Open.
The win also means the Serb now has a 30-1 record against players playing in his home Slam after knocking out home crowd favorite Shelton.
“Before the quarterfinals I knew I would be playing against an American player and that is never easy. Control your nerves and be calm in the moments that matter,” Djokovic added.
“Today things were going really well for me and then he recovered and it was anyone's game at the end of the third set. “This is the kind of atmosphere we all like to play in, so I am very, very pleased with this victory today.”
At 20 years old, there will likely be plenty of opportunities for the young raider to perform strongly in future tournaments, and based on this year's US Open, he has more than enough skill to do so.
For Djokvoic, he has now reached his record 10th US Open final and will look to win his fourth title at Flushing Meadows in Sunday's final.
She also has the chance to make history and level Margaret Court's record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles.
The 36-year-old will play in the final at Arthur Ashe Stadium against the winner of the semi-final between Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev, who will play later on Friday.
