Tennis: Top-ranked Swiatek named WTA Player of the Year
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Iga Swiatek won 67 matches overall and topped the list of finals reached and trophies won.
PHOTO: AFP
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LONDON – World No. 1 Iga Swiatek was crowned WTA Player of the Year for the first time in her career, while Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova were named Doubles Team of the Year, the governing body of women’s tennis said on Monday.
Poland’s Swiatek went on a superb 37-match winning run and won the French and US Opens as well as titles at Doha, Indian Wells, Miami, Stuttgart, Rome and San Diego.
The 2020 Newcomer of the Year enjoyed a stellar 2022, as she won 67 matches overall and topped the list of finals reached and trophies won.
Krejcikova and doubles world No. 1 Siniakova took the team honour for the second season in a row after winning the Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open.
Jessica Pegula’s mentor David Witt was also recognised for his success, as he was voted by peers as the Coach of the Year, after guiding her to No. 3 in the rankings.
Pegula reached the first WTA 1000 final of her career at the Madrid Open and won the Guadalajara Open in addition to reaching the quarter-finals at three of the four Grand Slams.
Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur won the Karen Krantzcke Sportsmanship Award, while China’s Zheng Qinwen was named Newcomer of the Year after she climbed more than 100 places this year to reach a career-high ranking of 25th.
Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil was named the Most Improved Player of the Year after breaking into the top 20.
Germany’s Tatjana Maria was named the Comeback Player of the Year after reaching her first Grand Slam semi-final at Wimbledon after missing three Majors last year due to the birth of her second daughter.
Meanwhile, Ashleigh Barty’s fifth Newcombe Medal as Australia’s top player has been viewed dimly by compatriot Nick Kyrgios, who teed off at the award on social media.
Former world No. 1 Barty retired in March, not long after winning the Australian Open in January, which ended the country’s 44-year wait for a home champion.
She was awarded the Newcombe Medal at a ceremony on Monday.
Kyrgios, who enjoyed his best season and reached the final at Wimbledon, shared a graphic comparing his 2022 achievements with Barty’s on Instagram with the caption: “LOL. No respect at all. I don’t give a...”
Kyrgios has previously said he feels under-appreciated in his home country despite drawing crowds and media attention whenever he plays.
He told Australian media last week it was an “easy” decision to skip Australia’s recent Davis Cup campaign but he might be enticed back to the team if the country “embraced” him a bit more.
Barty told reporters she was honoured to win the award.
“It’s obviously an amazing way to cap off what has been an incredible journey,” Barty told reporters. “The journey of a lifetime, the journey of me chasing after my dreams and exploring what was possible out in the world.”
REUTERS
