Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka lead nominations for Laureus World Sports Awards after Jannik Sinner gets axed due to doping ban

Jannik Sinner was axed from the nominees for the Laureus Sportswoman of the Year Award because of his doping suspension

Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka lead nominations for Laureus World Sports Awards after Jannik Sinner gets axed due to doping ban

Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka (via X)

Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka were among the two best players in the world last year, dominating the ATP and WTA tours respectively. Both stars won two Grand Slams each for the first time in a single calendar year. That has now seen them clinch their nominations for the Laureus World Sports Award.

Alcaraz is in strong contention to win the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year after his rival Jannik Sinner was removed from the shortlist because of his doping saga. Both men were set to be on the six-man shortlist for the prestigious award, but the organizers announced a change last week.

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Laureus revealed that Sinner’s name will be removed from the shortlist after the Italian agreed with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for a three-month suspension settlement. In the settlement, Sinner took the fault for testing positive twice for clostebol in March 2024.

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With Sinner axed, Alcaraz is now up against French Olympic swimmer Leon Marchand, Formula 1 World Champion Max Verstappen, Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar, and Olympic pole vault gold winner Mondo Duplantis.

On the other hand, Sabalenka was the only women’s tennis player who made the six-women shortlist for the Laureus Sportswoman of the Year Award. The three-time Grand Slam champion is up against gymnastics legend and Olympic gold winner Simone Biles, Sufan Hassan, Faith Kipyegon, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, and footballer Aitana Bonmati.

Nonetheless, the 2024 Sportsman Award winner, Novak Djokovic, was not on the list. Despite the Serbian claiming his first Olympic gold medal in Paris last year, it was not enough to get a place on the list of nominees.

Carlos Alcaraz favorite to win the Indian Wells Open but a change of court could hamper those hopes

Carlos Alcaraz has already won one title this season which came at the Rotterdam Open. His other two tournaments this season ended with him reaching the quarterfinals. The Spaniard is now heading to the Indian Wells Open as the favorite to win the title for the third successive time in his career.

Carlos Alcaraz (2)
Carlos Alcaraz (Image via X)

He will be arriving in much better form than last year when he suffered an injury at the Rio Open. Currently, he has been playing exciting tennis and has taken his game to a higher level since the Australian Open. But, despite the quality of tennis Alcaraz produces at the Indian Wells Open, he now has a major problem on his hands.

The problem stems from Indian Wells’ change of court. Previously, the tournament was played Plexicushion and will now switch to Laykold, with the difference likely to be in the change of the pace of the ball and probably even in the bounce. The Laykold courts are known for a lower bounce and a faster surface overall.

Alcaraz, who has already gotten used to the old surface, will now have to look for a way to get used to Laykold courts. The Masters 1000 tournament is set to begin on March 5.