The date is around the 14th of December 2022, the Tennis season has ended. And already, many enthusiasts can agree on three main things:
- Rafael Nadal should never be doubted
- Carlos Alcaraz is a man to watch keenly
- Djokovic can still play very good tennis
Many people would also agree that the most exciting run for them was Alcaraz in the United States Open. Overall, 2022 was a great year for tennis, despite challenges like the pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
It also gave tennis and pickleball lovers a glimpse of the top players that would be watched in 2023.
Many enthusiasts also ended the year wondering how Nadal and Djokovic would fare in 2023 following the entry of the next generation players such as Alcaraz, the 20-year-old Spaniard who won a big trophy in Turin.
To cut to the chase, the second half of the men’s tennis season was very exciting, and the icing on the cake was without a doubt Serbia’s Djokovic beating Norway’s Casper Ruud 7-5, and 6-3.
With 2023 almost half-gone now, a revisit is proper, to see the top men and women tennis players to watch. These are:
1. Carlos Alcaraz
While a teenager in 2022, the Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz won the Men’s Singles number 1 spot in Turin, Italy, not forgetting he is the first teenager to ever reach that spot.
He is definitely one of the next generation players to watch in 2023 and beyond. Still a teenager, he had also earned himself some titles in Miami, Madrid and had won the U.S. Open. Now out of teenage, at 20 years, everyone is looking forward to what the future has for Alcaraz.
Seemingly following in the footsteps of his idol Federer, Alcaraz is a very exciting player to watch. He is full of energy, aggressive, and always pulls moves that catch his opponents by surprise, as he displayed in Madrid in May 2023.
2. Novak Djokovic
Despite missing many tournaments when he refused to be vaccinated, Djokovic bounced back into the scene in the second half of the year. By the end of the 2022 men’s season, it was predicted that in 2023, he would beat Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer to become the G.O.A.T – Greatest of All Time.
By the end of November 2022, he won his fourth-year-in-a-row Wimbledon trophy, bringing his trophy count of Grand Slam singles to 21. This put him ahead of Federer’s 20 and just one behind Rafael Nadal’s 22.
While Djokovic failed to play in the Australian Open and US Open in 2022 because of his anti-COVID vaccine stand, he is expected to play in 2023.
As we said in the opening paragraph, while many people will always be choosing between Federer and Nadal, Djokovic is not one to be dismissed easily.
3. Rafael Nadal still a player to watch in 2023
Because of his age, many people would write him off too quickly, but RAFAEL NADAL is never to be doubted.
Having said that, could 2023 the year he calls time on his glorious career in tennis? Well, no one can say for sure, except him. In any case, most fans bear the same sentiments towards British star Andy Murray.
2022 was a good year for him, but he needed rest and injections at different times of the year. He also finished (and won) the French Open with a numb left leg.
4. Iga Swiatek
At only 21 years of age, Swiatek from Poland is definitely a player to watch in 2023 and beyond. Today, in 2022, she was a favorite in every game that she played.
Her style is thrilling for spectators as it is energetic and aggressive, but she is also a very agile player. She moves swiftly from one end of the court to another, and makes fast attacks, packing a lot of power into her shots.
In 2022, Swiatek won two US Open and the Roland-Garros Grand Slams. In her young career in WTA, by May 2023, she had already amassed close to $12 million.
5. Ons Jabeur
With players like Ons Jabeur, the future of tennis is indeed bright. She is a four singles titles winner, and she was runners-up in the 2022 Wimbledon and US Open. She beat Tatjana Maria 6-2, 3-6, and 6-1 in the semi-final, but she lost the final to Elena Rybakina.
In June 2022, she also finished the year as number 2 in the women’s singles globally. She is also one of the most exciting players to watch. Fans love to catch her games because she is very friendly, the media loves her too.
Today, this 28-year-old-star from Tunisia is the highest ranked African Arab tennis player in WTA history.
Conclusion
In the world of tennis, many things happened in 2022. For instance, what had started as a bad season for Serbia’s Djokovic ended with him on the top.
This was a great year for tennis. And by December, all the signs of 2023 being greater were there!
But the keen eyes of many tennis enthusiasts in the world are not on the top players only. They are also on the upcoming, or the next generation of tennis greats.
The main people to watch are the 21-year-old Polish Swiatek (women’s), and 20-year-old Spaniard Alcaraz (men’s).
