Was Djokovic's Coach Snubbed Or Was Coach Of The Year Award Given In-Line With Past Years

Friday, 15 December 2023 at 21:20

byErik Virostko

Novak Djokovic's coach, Goran Ivanisevic, did not win the ATP's 2023 Coach of the Year award, and many were upset about it, including the Serbian himself.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion had one of the best seasons in his career, with his coach Ivanisevic guiding him along the way. However, it was Darren Cahill and Simone Vagnozzi who won the Coach of the Year award, as they led Jannik Sinner during the 2023 season.

Immediately after the award was announced, many fans were enraged by the fact that it wasn't Djokovic's coach who got the award. Their rage was later supported by Djokovic as he also hit out at the ATP in a social media post.

But was Ivanisevic really snubbed when it comes to the Coach of the Year award, or was it given in-line with the past seasons and former winners? Well, let's look at the history.

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2016 Coach of the Year - Magnus Norman:

The Coach of the Year award was first given in 2016, and even though Andy Murray had probably the best season of his career, ending the year as the world no. 1, while winning the Wimbledon Championships and the Olympics, his coach, Ivan Lendl didn't receive the award.

It also wasn't Emmanuel Planque, who led Lucas Pouille from 75th to 15th place in the ATP Rankings, and neither was the award given to Mikael Tillström, who helped Gael Monfils achieve his first-ever Top 10 finish.

Günter Bresnik also helped Dominic Thiem into the Top 10 for the first time in his career, yet, it was Magnus Norman, who led Stan Wawrinka to his maiden US Open triumph, who got the award.

2017 Coach of the Year - Neville Godwin:

In 2017, both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer won two Grand Slam titles, but neither Carlos Moya and Toni Nadal, nor Ivan Ljubicic was recognized for their efforts.

Kevin Anderson, who started the year as the world no. 67 and ended as the 14th player in the ATP Rankings, played his maiden Grand Slam final at the US Open, and it was his coach Neville Godwin who got the award.

2018 Coach of the Year - Marian Vajda:

After struggling with an elbow injury in 2017, Novak Djokovic returned to his best form in 2018, winning two Grand Slam titles and ending the year as the world no. 1.

As a result, it was not surprising that his coach, Marian Vajda, received the award for the Coach of the Year.

2019 Coach of the Year - Gilles Cervara:

In 2019, both Nadal and Djokovic split two Grand Slam titles, with the Spanish player managing to earn a few more points than his rival and finishing the season as the world no. 1.

Yet, once again, the award wasn't given to any of the coaches that led these players. Daniil Medvedev broke into the Top 10, played his first Grand Slam final at the US Open, and his coach Gilles Cervara received the award.

2020 Coach of the Year - Fernando Vicente:

In 2020, there were three different Grand Slam champions, as the Wimbledon Championships were not held, but neither of them was Andrey Rublev.

However, the Russian dominated the ATP 500 and ATP 250 tournaments, winning the most titles during the season, and once again, the trend of a player breaking into the Top 10 and his coach, Fernando Vicente, becoming the Coach of the Year followed.

2021 Coach of the Year - Facundo Lugones:

2021 was the season when Daniil Medvedev won his first Grand Slam title, played the final at the Australian Open, and at the same time, Novak Djokovic managed to win three Grand Slams and was only one match away from winning the Calendar Grand Slam.

But once again, at this point, quite unsurprisingly, the coaches of neither of these two players got the award. It was Facundo Lugones, who led Cameron Norrie to his first-ever ATP Masters 1000 title, who got the award.

2022 Coach of the Year - Juan Carlos Ferrero:

Carlos Alcaraz had an incredible 2022 season, and even though Rafael Nadal won more Grand Slams than his fellow Spaniard, the youngster had a breakthrough season, and the influence of his coach was undeniable, which is why he received the award.

2023 Coach of the Year - Darren Cahill and Simone Vagnozzi:

And finally, the 2023 award. Novak Djokovic had one of the best seasons of his career, but Jannik Sinner's coaches Darren Cahill and Simone Vagnozzi received the award.

Looking back at the previous years of this award, in fact, it's not that surprising, as often this award tries to recognize the behind-the-scenes work of coaches, and improvement of their players.

While Ivanisevic certainly helps Djokovic a lot, the Serbian was able to win 21 Grand Slam titles before this season, and it's arguable that his success was just the continuation of his greatness rather than some significant input from his coach.