Novak Djokovic has made it to another US Open semifinal, as he is set to take on American teen sensation, Ben Shelton. With this match, Djokovic will break Roger Federer’s all-time record of the most number of Grand Slam semifinal appearances, at 47 vis-a-vis the Swiss maestro’s 46. One of those semifinal wins at the US Open took the Serbian legend to the final in 2015, in which he took on Federer.
The match was a 4-setter, which Novak Djokovic won 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 against the 5-time champion. With that, Djokovic won his 2nd US Open title. After the match, he famously celebrated with Hollywood actor Gerard Butler with a famous dialogue of his from the movie 300 in 2006.
Djokovic perfectly masters ‘This is Sparta!’ dialogue
Gerard Butler had come to support Novak Djokovic in the US Open 2015, even though Roger Federer was the opponent. The win delighted Butler so much that he requested Djokovic for a special 5-second celebration. Butler told Djokovic to say the dialogue alongwith him, which went ‘This is Sparta!’. The 23-time Grand Slam champion delivered it perfectly.
Throwback to when Novak Djokovic celebrated with actor Gerald Butler after conquering Federer and 20,000 of his supporters in the US Open 2015 final.pic.twitter.com/l4RfP8sqrK
— Danny 🐊 (@DjokovicFan_) September 6, 2023
They did the same thing when Novak Djokovic won the US Open title for the third time in 2018. ‘This is Sparta’ was the war cry for Butler’s character in the 300 movie. As a result, Djokovic uses this as an inspiration to tell himself on the mirror as a mantra for every match.
Novak Djokovic beat Roger Federer in the US Open 2015 final
Novak Djokovic was in remarkable form in the 2015 season. The only player who looked the closest to beat him in a Grand Slam at the time was Roger Federer. Federer decided to get ultra-aggressive, coming more often on the net.
But the Swiss maestro could not convert 23 of the break points he earned. And that proved to be extremely costly, as Djokovic capitalized on that for covering up his own errors. Eventually, Djokovic grinded it out with his steely resolve as an aging Federer could not keep up with his pace.
Novak Djokovic – Roger Federer – US Open 2015 – Final pic.twitter.com/77YbFBrYBJ
— Djokovic best shots (@nolebestshots) July 24, 2023
After the match, Djokovic was graciously seen praising Federer and he was quoted as saying –
“I have to share my admiration for Roger, everything he’s still doing for tennis. It was a tough one tonight. I have a tremendous respect for Roger, an incredible record.
“Coming on court knowing you are playing against probably the best player in the game adds a little bit more pressure. I knew he was going to be very aggressive.”
In the 2015 season, Novak Djokovic had one of the best tennis seasons of all-time for any player in history. He won the Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open titles, while having made it to the French Open final. He carried that form into the 2016 season by defending the Australian Open and winning the French Open title for the first time in his career. It meant that he was holding all the 4 Grand Slams at the same time. He was upset in the Round of 32 at Wimbledon but still managed to make it to the finals of the US Open, losing again to Stan Wawrinka.
