World No. 1 Novak Djokovic has lost the 2023 AP Male Athlete of the Year award to MLB star Shohei Ohtani. The incident has angered tennis fans around the globe.
Ohtani, who recently signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the LA Dodgers, won the prestigious award on Wednesday, leaving behind Djokovic and Lionel Messi. With that, the Japanese received the accolade for the second time in three years, having previously won it in 2021.
The 29-year-old received 20 of the 87 votes, with the star footballer and the 24-time Grand Slam champion receiving 16 each. Meanwhile, NBA star Nikola Jokic received 12 votes.
Tennis fans have taken to X (formerly Twitter) to express their outrage that Novak Djokovic did not win the award despite having one of his best seasons ever, winning seven titles including three Majors.
One user wrote:
“Djokovic robbed big time.”
Another wrote: “Novak was robbed won 3 of 4 majors while Ohtani didn’t even make the playoffs.”
One account posted:
“Djokovic should’ve won, just objectively had a better year. It’s not debatable. He won 3/4 slams to pass nadal after they tried to take that away from him with the vax bs. Djokovic is the GOAT and this year solidified that.”
Here are a few more reactions from tennis fans: Once again Nole screwed
Over Novak??? Novak Djokovic?! 2023 been the year of fraudulent sports media. Insane.
