"Apparent heir to Roger Federer" - Tennis fans laud Casper Ruud for winning ATP Sportsmanship Award

The majority of tennis fans believe that Casper Ruud deserved to win the 2022 Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award more than anyone else.

The Norwegian star won his first ATP award on Friday when the association revealed that he was chosen by his colleagues on the tour. The award honors fair play, professionalism, and integrity on and off the court. It was named after former Swedish player and five-time Sportsmanship Award winner Stefan Edberg. Other nominees included Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Frances Tiafoe, and Matteo Berrettini.

In the last 18 years, this particular award has seen only two winners in Roger Federer (13 times) and Rafael Nadal (5 times). Ruud enjoyed a phenomenal season, winning three titles in Buenos Aires, Geneva, and Gstaad as he reached a career-high ranking of No. 2 in September. The 23-year-old also reached the finals of big events like the French Open, US Open, ATP Finals, and the Miami Open.

Fans were thrilled to finally see a new name walk away with the player-voted award after Federer and Nadal's domination for almost two decades. Ruud won hearts on multiple occasions this year with his extraordinary sportsman spirit, urging fans to even draw comparisons between him and 20-time Grand Slam winner Federer.

"Congrats @CasperRuud98. Your Sportsmanship is what made me follow you and your game. A worthy next-gen ambassador for the game after Roger Federer," a fan tweeted.

"Yeah, I wouldn’t have complained if Felix had won, that’s for sure, but that said, I gladly cheer for Casper. The only complaint I see about him is that he’s apparently too nice," a user wrote.

"As a Nadal fan I am so happy for you. Not only you had an amazing year with two grand slam finals but you showed you are a class act and amazing person in and off-court," another tweet read.

Here are a few more fan reactions:

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"Will try to keep my mood in the right place for next year" - Casper Ruud after winning ATP Sportsmanship Award

Casper Ruud is currently the World No. 3

After winning the 2022 Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award on Friday, Casper Ruud took to social media to express gratitude towards the ATP and the players who voted for him.

"A big thanks to everyone who voted for me for this year’s ATP Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award. I feel very, very honored and happy to win this prize this year. I will try to keep my mood in the right place for next year. Can’t wait to be back on the court," Ruud said.

The Norwegian player also congratulated the other ATP award-winners.

"Thank you so much, this means the world to me, and congratulations to the other award winners, all of them were very deserved," Casper Ruud tweeted.