A year after becoming the youngest No. 1 in the history of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Carlos Alcaraz has been selected by his fellow players as the winner of the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award, which recognises fair play, professionalism and integrity on and off the court.
“I’m so happy to win the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award,” said Alcaraz. “I’m especially happy that it’s an award chosen by my colleagues on the circuit. It means a lot to me, so thank you all very much.”
Alcaraz becomes the fourth Spaniard to receive the prestigious ATP Awards honour, joining Jose Higueras (1983), Alex Corretja (1996, 1998) and five-time winner Rafael Nadal (2010, 2018-21).
The 20-year-old has now won three player-voted ATP Awards, receiving Newcomer of the Year in 2020 and Most Improved in 2022.
Whether sending get-well-soon messages to injured opponents or sharing his umbrella with ballkids during a prolonged rain delay, the two-time major singles titlist has fast gained a reputation as one of the tour’s classiest players. When Fabio Fognini crashed to the court earlier this year in Rio de Janeiro, Alcaraz famously crossed the net and, much to the delight of the fans, helped return his foe to his feet.
Alcaraz captured six titles in 2023, his biggest coming via a five-set win over two-time defending champion Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon. He also prevailed in Buenos Aires, Indian Wells, Barcelona, Madrid and London (Queen’s Club). The baseliner was the World No. 1 heading into the US Open, bringing his total to 36 weeks atop the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.
Grigor Dimitrov, Hubert Hurkacz and Jannik Sinner were also nominated in this category. Sportsmanship nominees are determined by an International Tennis Writers’ Association (ITWA) vote, and the winner is selected by players from the shortlist.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]