World number one Carlos Alcaraz has capped off a breakthrough year by becoming the highest-earning player on the ATP circuit this season.
The 19-year-old earned more than A$15 million this season, seeing him edge out 21-time grand slam singles champion Novak Djokovic (A$14.8 million) and Spanish compatriot Rafael Nadal (A$14 million).
Alcaraz made history at the 2022 US Open, where his victory made him the first male teenager to win a major title since Rafael Nadal and seeing him become the youngest world number one in the history of the ATP rankings, breaking the record of previous record of Australian Lleyton Hewitt.
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By ending the year as world number one, Alcaraz became the first player other than Nadal, Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray to hold the year-end ranking since big-serving American Andy Roddick in 2003.
It marked an extraordinary rise up the rankings for Alcaraz, who finished the 2021 season as world No.32.
With Nadal finishing the year as the second-ranked player in the world, he and Alcaraz become the first countrymen to finish in the top two spots since Americans Pete Sampras and Michael Chang in 1996.
Djokovic occupied the world number one spot for 20 weeks this season, but missed several events due to his decision not to get vaccinated against Covid-19.
Additionally, his win at Wimbledon was not reflected in the rankings, with the ATP and WTA declaring it would not award ranking points given the All-England Club banned Russian and Belarusian players from competing in the event amid the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Despite being the world number one, Alcaraz has plenty of opportunity to add to his points total in 2023, with his best results at the Australian Open and Wimbledon being a third and fourth-round appearance respectively.
