Men’s Tennis governing council Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) has unveiled the list of nominees for the ‘Comeback Player of the Year Award’, and with no surprise Rafael Nadal leads the panel, alongside Somdev Devvarman, Tommy Robredo and Dmitry Tursunov who all fought their injuries out, to make a flying comeback on the tour.
RAFAEL NADAL – Rafael Nadal has had a dream comeback, after the brutal knee-injury sidelined him for several months from competing on the tour. But, the Spaniard exhibited sheer determination, as he made the world witness a stronger, healthier Nadal, who went on to win the French Open, followed by the U.S. Open this year. Nadal, who is 69-5 this year, dethroned Novak Djokovic to slouch on the crest of the rankings once again.
SOMDEV DEVVARMAN – Once a ‘danger’ to the top players, India’s Somdev Devvarman was trapped by an injury, which took him out of the top 600 in the rankings. But, the 28-year-old has emerged much sturdier and an enhanced player post-comeback, having scored upset wins over Alexandr Dolgopolov, Leonardo Mayer, Robin Haase, Lukas Lacko, Jack Sock, Donald Young, and many other top players. Devvarman, known for his accuracy on the court, is 38-23 this year, which has impelled his rankings to mount within the top 100 yet again.
TOMMY ROBREDO – Spain’s Tommy Robredo was also among the few, who made it large after returning from injury. Robredo triumphed in Umag this year, defeating Italian Fabio Fognini in the finals. The Spaniard also emerged victorious in Casablanca, where in process, he overcame the likes of Stanisilas Wawrinka and Benoit Paire. Captivatingly, Robredo is yet to lose a hard-court outing, winning all the nine matches played this season.
DMITRY TURSUNOV – Russian tennis star Dmitry Tursunov, has had a decent comeback post-injury, having won 61% of his matches this year. Though Tursunov is yet to win a tournament this season, he has done a spectacular job on Clay, going down in just one match of the nine encounters he featured in.
Let’s hope the deserving contender takes the award, which would assist him to emerge not only a better player, but also a much refined person.
Main photo credit: César Poyatos via photopin cc
