#SmashTalk: ATP season awards

The tennis season is officially done.

With the Davis Cup concluding at the weekend with a thrilling final in Zagreb, the men can finally join the women for a much-needed break in the off-season.

As we did at the end of the women’s season with our WTA awards, we dissect the men’s season, with doubles legend Todd Woodbridge (TW) joining tennismash staffers Matt Trollope (MT) and Leigh Rogers (LR) for a look at the highs and lows of 2016.

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Player of the year

TW: Andy Murray has to be player of the year. It was unthinkable that he could catch Novak this year and end the year at No.1. One of the best performances in many years.

MT: Everyone’s focused on Andy Murray lately, but Novak Djokovic still had the better year. The trouble is, everyone’s forgotten about it because his success came in the first half of the season, rather than the second during which Murray went on a tear. Even though the Serb finished at No.2 behind Murray, he won two majors (Australian and French) to Murray’s one (Wimbledon) and achieved the remarkable Indian Wells-Miami double, giving him four of the year’s seven biggest titles. Plus, Djokovic’s wins came against tougher opposition – through Roland Garros Djokovic had notched seven wins over top-five players, while during Murray’s run in the second half of 2016, he didn’t even face a top-five player until the last event of the year, the ATP Finals.

LR: Novak Djokovic. Andy Murray may have finished as year-end No.1 – but Djokovic etched his name into history as the first man since Rod Laver to hold all four Grand Slams after his long-awaited French Open triumph. The Serb deserves player of the year honours for that incredible feat.

Match of the year

TW: Murray d del Potro – Rio 2016 Olympics gold medal match. This match proved that tennis belongs at the Olympics. No prize money on the line; just the pure pride of playing and winning for your country. It was brilliant.

MT: Federer d Cilic – Wimbledon QF. It must be said that 2016 was severely lacking in men’s classics. But this was one that did stick in my mind. Cilic looked in control of this encounter when he lead Federer by two-sets-to-love, playing the kind of relentlessly aggressive yet controlled tennis that won him the US Open two years ago. But when the Swiss started making his comeback, the atmosphere on Centre Court was incredible. Roger posted a win for the ages by saving three match points in the fourth set before sealing a 67(4) 46 63 76(9) 63 triumph.

LR: Djokovic d Federer – Australian Open SF. I’m picking a slightly left-of-field match. The Serb was simply sensational yet Federer still managed to push the match to four sets against a peaking world No.1. The match featured some great points and showcased the immense talents of two great champions.

Most impressive newcomer

TW: Alex Zverev shone this year. He is not so much a newcomer but he made it very clear that he has the game and, more importantly, the mentality, to go all the way to the top 10. Then who knows what’s possible?

MT: The term newcomer is always a little vague, but at least that gives us some flexibility. I’m going to go with Lucas Pouille. The Frenchman was ranked No.78 at the end of 2015 but shot up the rankings to finish this year at 15th. He truly came to prominence at the US Open with a thrilling five-set triumph over Rafael Nadal at Arthur Ashe Stadium to reach his second Grand Slam quarterfinal of the year after doing the same at Wimbledon. His mix of power, flair and athleticism is underlined by an impressive steadiness and work ethic. Plenty of tools for success at his disposal.

LR: Alexander Zverev. The 19-year-old German reached four ATP finals, snapped Stan Wawrinka’s 11-final winning streak to score his own first title and became the youngest man to reach the top 20 since Novak Djokovic in 2006. Not to mention he became the first teenager to consecutively beat three top 10 opponents since Boris Becker in 1986. If that’s not impressive, I don’t know what is!

Most frustrating player

TW: My countryman Nick Kyrgios. He’s talented but his emotions are holding back his true potential. I’m hoping that 2017 is a cleaner year for him. If so, the sky’s the limit.

MT: I was tempted to say Kei Nishikori, whose repeated inability to perform at his best when the stakes are highest is disappointing. But I suppose these days that’s more accepted rather than frustrating. So I’ll go with Tomas Berdych – a player with his weapons, stature and experience should be much more successful than he is. And when he finally looked to be gathering some steam with his Shenzhen title – which put him in contention for London – he lost four of his next six matches to close the season limply, and missed out on a trip to The O2.

LR: Bernard Tomic. He started the year in great form, scoring his first top 10 win on Australian soil against Kei Nishikori in Brisbane to rise to a career-high No.17. It appeared greater heights would soon follow – but instead the immensely-talented 24-year-old slipped to No.26 by season-end. Frustratingly, the 30-24 win-loss record he compiled could, and should, be better.

Biggest surprise of the ATP season in 2016

TW: It had to happen, but we didn’t think it would happen this quickly or almost at exactly the same time. Roger and Rafa had little to no impact on the season, and this changing of the guard seemed to happen in the blink of an eye.

MT: Murray finishing the year at No.1. After the monstrous ranking points lead Djokovic held over the second-placed Murray following the French Open, I never saw this coming. My surprise at Murray’s ascent to No.1 is matched by my surprise at Djokovic’s form collapse in the back half of 2016.

LR: Rafael Nadal failed to reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal for the first time since 2004. Sure, a wrist injury thwarted his French Open and Wimbledon campaigns, but a shock first-round exit at the Australian Open and five-set loss to Lucas Pouille at the US Open after holding match points reiterated that the Spaniard’s dominant days are over.