NHL star Martin Necas was imitating Ben Shelton‘s cell phone celebration on the ice after winning a game in overtime. Officially, Shelton has now transcended the sport of tennis.

First, it was other tennis players who were imitating Shelton’s actions where he gestures his hands as though he is calling somebody. Novak Djokovic was slammed for imitating Shelton’s actions after Djokovic defeated him at the US Open. Many felt that Djokovic’s actions were in poor taste.

Necas plays for the Carolina Hurricanes. Necas and his teammate Svechnikov attended the US Open this year. It’s possible that Necas was inspired by Shelton.

Ben Shelton had an incredible 2023 season. He reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open and the semifinals at the US Open. He won his first ATP title at the Japan Open and will finish the year in the Top 20 in world rankings.

Daniil Medvedev accidentally hit a fan in the stands in Vienna. But he was not defaulted from the match for his actions. The official response drew the ire of many fans who felt that Medvedev got off easy.

In his match against Arthur Fils, when Medvedev was leading 5-1, an ace from Fils hit the sponsor board and bounced back to Medvedev. He tried to deflect the ball reflexively and accidentally hit an old lady in the stands in her face. Medvedev immediately apologized to the lady

Social media was quick to point out the double standards – Novak Djokovic was defaulted from the US Open for accidentally hitting a line umpire but Medvedev continued on with the match.

Replays show that Daniil Medvedev was protecting himself from hitting the face and in his reflexive response accidentally hit the fan. But we can be sure that Medvedev did not hit the ball in frustration as he was comfortably ahead in the match.