The International Sports Press Association has released its list of nominees for the top athletes, both male and female. However, tennis fans can’t believe that two of the players who just announced their retirement are among them. Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka are up for the best female athlete of the year accolade, while the 20-time Grand Slam champion is up for the best male athlete of 2022 honor.
The trio’s nominations surprised the tennis community given their competitive play throughout the entire season.
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Tennis fans are not happy with the ISPA decision
ISPA chose the nominees for the greatest athlete of the year 2022 from throughout the sport and published on Friday. The list also includes Rafael Nadal, who won two Grand Slam titles this year, and Ons Jabeur, who rose to the world number two ranking this year. However, it also includes Serena Williams and Roger Federer, who ended their long tennis careers and didn’t play much this season. Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam winner who also didn’t have a lot of opportunities to play this year, is on the list of nominees shocking the tennis world.
Federer, Serena and Osaka nominated for Best Athlete of the year 2022 by ISPA. Both world #1s excluded. from tennis
Over this announcement, it feels like the tennis world is not happy with the decision made by the Sports Association and they are displaying their dissatisfaction over the same with their comments.
A fan wrote, “It’s almost like someone was just asked to name three tennis players.” Others stirred up and added that the players have recently retired.
Even some Federer and Williams fans were upset with the news.
Not only that, but a handful of fans also made fun of the Japanese tennis player.
However, the tennis Association also faced a lot of heat from the fans.
On the other hand, fans are most curious about how the top tennis players this year are out of the best athlete race.
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Williams and Osaka also became the highest-paid athlete
The American tennis legend and the Japanese tennis star both appeared on the list of the highest-paid athletes earlier this year. Williams, the former world number one, was at number 52 and the four-time winner was at number 20. Despite having her time on the tennis court cut short because of several health issues, Osaka this year had to deal with a lot of relatively inactive time.
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Furthermore, the 23-time Grand Slam champion’s retirement made her the most well-liked tennis player of the year after dedicating two long decades to the sport and creating a for the next generation. Even the Swiss Maestro appeared on the list of high-paid athletes.
What do you think about the best athlete nominees? Let us know in the comments below.
