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The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) has announced its nominees for the 2023 Player of the Year award, shining a spotlight on six athletes who have excelled on the court this season. These players are Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, Elena Rybakina, and Marketa Vondrousova.
Mario Boccardi took to X (formerly Twitter) to share a photo of the nominees.
Iga Swiatek, holding the year-end No.1 rank, captured six titles this year, including a successful defense of her French Open crown, and boasts a 68-11 win-loss tally.
Aryna Sabalenka claimed her maiden major singles title at the Australian Open, a significant milestone in her career. On the other side, Coco Gauff made her mark by winning her first major singles title at the US Open.
Jessica Pegula's year includes a victory at Montreal, reaching the US Open mixed doubles final, and becoming World No. 1 in doubles. Her season was marked by consistent performances and key victories, including a win over Swiatek at the United Cup.
Elena Rybakina, despite not winning a major this year, put up strong performances to be nominated. She broke into the top 10 this year, winning titles at Indian Wells and the Italian Open, and reaching the Australian Open final.
Marketa Vondrousova's standout achievement was winning Wimbledon, making her the first unseeded player to do so in the Open Era. She is now ranked within the top 10 after a season with a 29-10 win-loss record.
The criteria for these nominations are rigorous, reflecting the players' performances throughout the year. Titles, win-loss records, and significant victories all play a part in the selection process. The winner will be chosen by a process of voting among members of the international tennis media and will be announced in the coming weeks.
Mirra Andreeva among top nominees for the WTA Newcomer of the Year 2023 Award
Mirra Andreeva has emerged as one of the young stars, earning her place among the nominees for the WTA Newcomer of the Year 2023 award after a remarkable season of tennis. The 16-year-old Russian has shown exceptional talent, securing a year-end ranking of 46th and winning more than half of her matches on the WTA tour.
Andreeva's year was highlighted by four victories over top 20 players and a memorable run to the fourth round at Wimbledon. Not only did she start the year ranked 293rd, but she also managed to finish as the runner-up in the Australian Open junior tournament and claimed titles at ITF events in Switzerland.
Joining Andreeva on the list of nominees is Diana Shnaider, who made her Grand Slam debut at the 2023 Australian Open. Shnaider reached her first WTA final this year and broke into the top 60 in October.
American player Peyton Stearns has also been recognized for her breakthrough season. After turning professional in 2022, she reached her first WTA Tour final and made it to the fourth round of a major for the first time, with a career-high singles ranking of 43rd.
Elina Avanesyan, another promising Russian, made her mark by winning a title on the lower-level ITF circuit and boasting a singles win/loss record of 34/24 for the year. Her highest singles rank was 62nd.
Completing the list is Linda Noskova from the Czech Republic, who reached her first two top-10 wins and a WTA Tour final. She also made it to the third round in two WTA 1000 events and has a career-high singles ranking of 40th.
WTA Player Awards 2023 nominations at a glance:
WTA Player of the Year: Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, Elena Rybakina, Marketa Vondrousova
WTA Comeback Player of the Year: Marketa Vondrousova, Karolina Muchova, Elina Svitolina, Hsieh Su-Wei, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
WTA Newcomer of the Year: Mirra Andreeva, Diana Shnaider, Peyton Stearns, Elina Avanesyan, Linda Noskova
WTA Most Improved Player of the Year: Wang Xinyu, Zhu Lin, Katie Boulter, Zheng Qinwen, Jasmine Paolini
WTA Doubles Team of the Year: Coco Gauff/Jessica Pegula, Storm Hunter/Elise Mertens, Gabriela Dabrowski/Erin Routliffe, Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova, Laura Siegemund/Vera Zvonareva
Coach of the Year: Brad Gilbert and Pere Riba - Current player: Coco Gauff, Tomasz Wiktorowski - Current Player: Iga Swiatek, Anton Dubrov - Current Player: Aryna Sabalenka, Emil Miske - Current Player: Karolina Muchova, Stefano Vukov - Current Player: Elena Rybakina, Raemon Sluiter - Current Player: Elina Svitolina
