Barty & Kyrgios biggest favourites for Australian Tennis Player of the Year as nominees are announced
ATP & WTA
Ashleigh Barty and Nick Kyrgios have been nominated for the Australian Tennis Player of the Year, and they are the favorites to win the honor.
Barty shocked the tennis world by retiring from professional tennis in March of this year. She was just 25, ranked No. 1, and seemed to be approaching the prime of her career since many players peak in their mid-to-late twenties.
The three-time Grand Slam champion recently discussed her reasons for retiring, admitting the internal fire she had throughout her career diminished after winning last year's Wimbledon Championships, completing a childhood dream.
Despite only being active for a short period this season, Barty was nominated for Australian Tennis Player of the Year after winning the Australian Open, overcoming Danielle Collins in front of a passionate home crowd in Melbourne.
It might be challenging to overcome Barty since she won the singles in her country's Grand Slam, but Nick Kyrgios' impressive year gives him the best chance of beating Barty compared to the other nominees.
Kyrgios reached the first Grand Slam final of his career at this year's Wimbledon Championships. The 27-year-old fell in a tight four-set final to Novak Djokovic, failing to take the match to a fifth set after losing the fourth on a tie-break.
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That was followed by winning the Citi Open in Washington and progressing to the quarterfinal of the US Open during the North American hardcourt swing before his singles season ended with an injury.
Kyrgios also teamed up with Thanasi Kokkinakis to win the Australian Open men's doubles title. They overcame fellow Australians Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell to reign supreme in Melbourne.
Alex de Minaur and Ajla Tomljanovic are among the other nominees for the award. However, Barty and Kyrgios are undoubtedly the outstanding candidates. Either would be a worthy winner of the honor.
