Rafael Nadal left red-faced by Novak Djokovic, Emma Raducanu and three stars

Novak Djokovic has been named the most marketable tennis player of 2023 in a new list. It comes after the world No 1 won three more Grand Slam titles to take his total tally to 24. But his long-time rival Rafael Nadal has found himself much further down the list, surpassed by Djokovic, Emma Raducanu, Coco Gauff, Naomi Osaka and Aryna Sabalenka.

Djokovic was named the 11th most marketable athlete of the year in a new list from SportsPro that takes into account a person’s brand strength, their total addressable market and their economics. The 24-time Grand Slam champion received an overall marketability score of 87.96, putting him at the top of the pile when it comes to tennis players.

Nadal was nowhere near his rival after spending most of the year on the sidelines. The 37-year-old has not played a match since he crashed out of the Australian Open in the second round, picking up an injury. Nadal came in at 41st on the overall athlete list and was the sixth most marketable tennis player with a score of 73.42.

As well as falling behind Djokovic, the 22-time Major winner also wasn’t as marketable as four WTA players, including Coco Gauff. The 19-year-old recently won her maiden Grand Slam title at the US Open and was hot on Djokovic’s heels, coming in at 12th on the overall athlete list with a marketability score of 87.95 – only 0.01 behind the Serb.

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Gauff is a New Balance athlete and is also sponsored by companies like Barilla, and SportsPro thought that the American had already formed a strong personal brand – scoring 31.97 out of 35 for her brand strength and 43.92 out of 45 for her total addressable market. Naomi Osaka wasn’t far behind the world No 3 despite being absent for the entire 2023 tennis season as she gave birth to her first child in July.

Coming in at 14th overall and the third most marketable tennis player, the four-time Grand Slam champion received a score of 84.98, with her highest rating coming in brand strength. New world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka was 18th in the athlete list with a marketability score of 81.60 after a career-best year that saw her win her first Major title and reach the top of the rankings.

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Emma Raducanu was another player to make the list despite barely playing this year. The Brit was rated the 21st most marketable athlete with a score of 79.58. The 20-year-old shut down her season back in May when she underwent three surgeries and is hoping to return next year. Raducanu counts brands like Dior, Porsche and British Airways among her lucrative list of sponsors.

With Osaka and Raducanu’s high ratings, it means that it is still possible for tennis players to remain marketable despite long layoffs. But Nadal hasn’t been able to match them during his own injury absence. Meanwhile, Petra Kvitova and Ons Jabeur also made the overall athlete list at 43rd and 50th respectively.

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