Carlos Alcaraz Headlines ATP Sportsmanship Award Nominees

Carlos Alcaraz is one of four high-profile players nominated for the ATP's Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award.

The sportsmanship award is given yearly to the man who conducted himself with the highest level of professionalism and integrity, competed with a spirit of fairness, and promoted the sport through off-court activities.

Roger Federer, who wrote an emotional message to Rafael Nadal on the morning of what turned out to be the Spaniard's final day as a professional tennis player at the Davis Cup Finals, used to dominate the award.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion won it an unprecedented 13 times. Aside from 2010, when Nadal claimed it, Federer was chosen from 2004 until 2017, which is somewhat staggering.

Federer was known throughout his career for being classy and fair on the court, and also repeatedly promoted tennis off the court as the sport's most high-profile player until he retired.

Nadal and Edberg share the honor of the second-most awards with five each. The honor was named after Edberg from 1996 onwards because of how often he won it due to conducting himself with class at all times.

Unlike Federer and Nadal, Novak Djokovic has never won the award. Although the Serbian always shows respect to his opponents, the 37-year-old can be prone to fiery outbursts at umpires, the crowd, and team members.

It will be particularly interesting to see if there are any fiery clashes toward his team next year. Djokovic stunned tennis fans worldwide by hiring Andy Murray, his former rival on the court, as his coach until at least the end of the 2025 Australian Open.

Djokovic never winning the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award illustrates Toni Nadal's argument that Federer and Nadal earned a higher level of respect than the 24-time Grand Slam champion because of their conduct.

Alcaraz won last year's Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award. The 21-year-old is known for smiling on the court and playing matches in an enjoyable atmosphere for opponents and fans alike.

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However, the two-time Wimbledon champion is prone to the occasional outburst. He smashed his racket during a defeat to Gael Monfils at the Cincinnati Open and threw it after losing the first set against Alexander Zverev at the ATP Finals.

Casper Ruud is another player on the shortlist. The Norwegian won the award in 2022 and has been known as one of the most classy players on the ATP Tour for a few years despite still being just 25.

Unlike Alcaraz, Ruud has never smashed a racket during a match. He hopes to emulate his idol Rafael Nadal, who did not break a racket once in more than 20 years as a professional. Babolat referenced this on a signature bag made for Nadal.

Grigor Dimitrov also made the shortlist. The former Wimbledon semifinalist is friends with several players on the ATP circuit and has bravely discussed mental health, saying men should speak about it more.

Dominic Thiem is the final nominee. The 2020 US Open winner retired from professional tennis on home soil at the Vienna Open. He always behaved well on and off the court.

Jannik Sinner, who conducts himself superbly on the court, is a notable omission, but the ATP might have felt it was impossible to include him because of his ongoing doping case.

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