Jack Draper, Carlos Alcaraz and Dominic Thiem shortlisted for major ATP awards | Tennis | Sport
British No.1 Jack Draper has joined the likes of Carlos Alcaraz and Dominic Thiem in being nominated for an honour in the 2024 ATP Awards. Overall, 18 players have been named over the five categories, with Draper’s coach James Trotman also listed.
The 22-year-old is up for the Most Improved Player of the Year following his breakthrough season, which saw him reach the semi-finals of the US Open.
In doing so, he became the first male UK player to reach that stage at Flushing Meadows since Andy Murray won the tournament in 2012.
He’ll compete for the prize, voted on by players, with Tomas Machac, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, and Alejandro Tabilo. Both Alcaraz and Thiem have been shortlisted for the Stefan Edberg Sportmanship Award.
The pair have been joined by Grigor Dimitrov and Caasper Ruud, with International Tennis Writers’ Association members voting to determine the winner. The Spaniard is out to retain the award having prevailed in 2023.
The Comeback Player of the Year is between Matteo Berrettini, Marin Cilic and Kei Nishikori. Two 19-year-olds, Jakub Mensik and Juncheng Shang, will contest the Newcomer of the Year award.
Trotman meanwhile, is up for Coach of the Year. He’s been named alongside, Xavier Malisse, who mentors Alexei Popyrin, Emmanuel Planque (Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard) Michael Russell (Taylor Fritz) and Brad Stine (Tommy Paul).
Arguably the two most important honours though, will be decided by tennis supporters. Voting on the ATP website is already open for the Fans’ Favourite Singles Player and Doubles Team.
Last year, it was Jannik Sinner who took the individual prize, with Karen Khachanov and Andrey Rublev deemed the most popular pairing. The ATP themselves will hand awards to the player and doubles team currently No.1 by their rankings.
The awards have been running since 1975, when Bjorn Borg was the world No.1. A statement from the ATP confirmed how long voting was open this time around, and revealed when announcements would take place.
“ATP Awards winners, including Fans’ Favourite, will be revealed during Awards week, starting December 9,” it read. “Fans can vote for their favourite singles player and doubles team through to Wednesday, November 27.”
