Our Paris 2024 Olympic Games tennis awards – starring Novak Djokovic & Zheng Qinwen
The dust is settling on tennis action at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, with Zheng Qinwen and Novak Djokovic taking the singles gold medals.
It was a fascinating event all around, with a slow – and at times controversial – start followed by a grandstand finish over the final few days.
Now, we look back and hand out our awards from Olympic action.
Best Match
Men: It’s hard to look past the epic final between Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz as the match of the men’s tournaments. It may have been straight sets, but the Serbian’s 7-6(3), 7-6(2) was enthralling from start to finish, lasting almost three hours as he and Alcaraz pushed each other from pillar to post.
Women: Donna Vekic left Paris with a silver medal and that was largely down to an extraordinary quarter-final win over Marta Kostyuk. Quality and drama were present throughout, and the Croatian twice failed to serve out the match before saving a match point in a 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(8) triumph.
Biggest Upset
Men: Alexander Zverev was highly fancied to retain his Olympic title but the stirring summer of Lorenzo Musetti continued, the Italian prevailing 7-5, 7-5 in a fantastic quarter-final. It was a missed chance for Zverev, who has been one of the form players of 2024.
Women: There were a few eye-catching results in the women’s draw, but no shock was bigger than Qinwen’s 6-2, 7-5 semi-final victory over Iga Swiatek. World No 1 Swiatek was the overwhelming gold medal favourite but struggled with nerves – and the sixth seed sensationally punished her.
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Breakout Star
Men: There’s no obvious candidate for this award, so we’ll go for Musetti – undoubtedly the most surprising of the men’s singles medallists. The Italian is building his game to new heights, and a first-ever tennis medallist for Italy is no mean feat.
Women: You can’t look past Qinwen here. She already was a big name and a Grand Slam finalist, but this win has propelled her to new heights in and out of the sport, and she could become one of the biggest sports stars in the world.
Emotional Moment
Men: After so many gutwrenching near-misses, watching Djokovic finally claim Olympic gold was a truly stirring moment. The release of joy and relief from a man who has done everything else in the sport was a sight to behold – don’t let anyone tell you Olympic tennis doesn’t matter.
Women: No story in the women’s draw was better than an epic final run for Angelique Kerber, who dazzled with her run to the last eight. Victories over Naomi Osaka and Leylah Fernandez were truly memorable – and her final battle against Qinwen was one of the matches of the event.
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