🤯 Semifinal Surprise

In a stunning upset lastnight, Daniil Medvedev dashed the hopes of a dream weekend by defeating top-seeded Carlos Alcaraz in their semifinal clash.

Medvedev or as we like to refer to him “the human octopus”, known for his unconventional playing style and polarising personality, disrupted the anticipated generational rivalry between Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic.

Instead of the expected Alcaraz-Djokovic final, Sunday will feature a rematch of the 2021 U.S. Open final between Medvedev and Djokovic. Medvedev had previously halted Djokovic's quest for a calendar year Grand Slam with a convincing victory.

During their Friday night showdown, Medvedev matched Alcaraz shot for shot, forcing the young spaniard to the edge of frustration in the second set. Despite Alcaraz's comeback attempt in the third set, Medvedev prevailed in four sets, winning 7-6 (3), 6-1, 3-6, 6-3.

While Alcaraz showed flashes of brilliance, Medvedev's tenacity and tactical prowess proved decisive. In a marathon sixth game of the fourth set, Medvedev's backhand return broke Alcaraz's serve, sealing his victory.

Alcaraz will head back the practice courts, taking all he can from this loss. In his post match press conference he was clear on what he needs to to work on:

“He played a really, really great game. I couldn't find solutions,” Alcaraz said. “I thought that right now I am a better player [who can] find solutions when the match is not going in the right direction for you. But after this match, I’m going to change my mind. I'm not mature enough to handle these kind of matches. So I have to learn from that.”

Now, Medvedev gears up for a mentally demanding battle against Djokovic, acknowledging it as a unique test in the world of tennis. It’s “a mental preparation where you want to go to war.”

 📞 Djokovic hangs up on Shelton

Novak Djokovic saw off his young American challenger in the early of the day’s semifinals. With the 6-3, 6-2, 7-6(4) win over the 20-year-old he is now three sets from Margaret Court’s all-time mark of 24 Slams.

Despite the straight sets win, not all things went Djokovic’s way. Midway through the 3rd set things changed. Djokovic would break for 4-2 in the third but shortly after out of nowhere Shelton would get the break back for 4-all. Suddenly, the lefty was awake and so too was the crowd who wanted more tennis.

At 4-5, Djokovic would save a set point and then break again for 6-5. But serving for it Djokovic came up short on a match point only to get broken. In the end Djokovic proved the stronger player in the breaker and he closed it out to reach his 36th career Grand Slam final and 13th at the US Open. Djokovic actually finished with the same number of aces (5) as Shelton who never really got his serve going.

“It wasn’t easy to close this match out, but I’m really glad I did in three sets,” Djokovic said. “Didn’t want to take this match to a fourth set, that’s for sure. He’s got a lot of firepower, an amazing pop on the serve. He’s just so dynamic and very unpredictable.”

However the most talked about moment of the match came after match point, when Djokovic imitated Shelton’s phone-to-the-ear then hang-up routine. Shelton said he didn’t see it, but the handshake at the net was frosty.

Facing a lot of criticism online Djokovic responded in his post match interview, “And I just love Ben’s celebration,” Djokovic semi-joked. “I thought it was very original, and I copied him. I stole his celebration.”

Said Shelton when asked about the imitation took the high road: “As a kid growing up, I always learned that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so that’s all I have to say about that.”

Going into the final Djokovic leads Medvedev 9-5 with that tough loss in New York in 2021. Who will hang up first?

 ⏰ Shot Clock

🙌 Bopanna hailed for memorable act of sportsmanship in US Open doubles final. At 2-4 in the final set, his partner Ebden hit a cross-court forehand that grazed the Indian’s right arm before it crossed the net and continued on for a winner. The chair umpire did not notice the touch, but Bopanna called it on himself, forfeiting the point. The pair went onto lose the match to Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury,

👮 The US Open beefed up security ahead of finals weekend following climate protests. The tournament said they have added more members of the police, including undercover officers, on Friday a day after four environmental activists in the Arthur Ashe Stadium stands caused a 50-minute delay during Coco Gauff's women's semifinal victory.

🤌 Fabio Fognini attacks captain of the Italian Davis Cup team The Italian hot head and his father have verbally attacked Filippo Volandri after he excluded him from the team. Volandri defended his decision and called Fognini ‘ungrateful’.

🤕 Alcaraz to miss Davis Cup following US Open defeat. The former world no.1 will not lead Spain at the upcoming Davis Cup Finals Group Stage at home in Valencia. After his shock defeat on Friday night, Alcaraz has decided to rest his body and skip the next week's national duties.

 💪 Weekend motivation

Heading out on to the courts this weekend? Here’s some motivation to get your forehand firing for your match…