London:Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic and Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka were honoured as the International Tennis Federation's 2023 ITF World Champions after being the only singles players to have appeared in at least four Grand Slam semi-finals this year.
Novak Djokovic had won the Australian Open, French Open, and US Open and ended up as the runner-up in the Wimbledon tournament, finishing this season as the number-one ranked player for the record eighth time. Notably, this eighth ITF World Champion award is also a record.
Djokovic also became the player with the third-most ATP titles with 98 trophies till date and is only behind the Former United States player Jimmy Connors (109) and then his former rival Roger Federer (103).
Aryna Sabalenka has received the award for the first time. Sabalenka opened her Grand Slam title account with the Australian Open and failed to win the US Open while reaching the semi-finals at the French Open and Wimbledon.
Sabalenka achieved No.1 ranking for the first time in September, before finishing the year at No. 2 behind Iga Swiatek, the WTA Player of the Year. Australian Storm Hunter and Belgian Elise Mertens in women's doubles, American Rajeev Ram and British Joe Salisbury in men's doubles, Diede de Groot in the women's and Alfie Hewett in the men's wheelchair category, Niels Vink in the quad wheelchair category and Alina Korneeva and Joao Fonseca in the juniors category, are the other to receive the ITF World champions award.
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