Musetti surprisingly surpasses Sinner to claim victory, sparking controversy over Italy's annual sports award

Recently, La Gazzetta dello Sport selected Musetti as Italy’s "Athlete of the Year," causing a wave of debate online. Sinner, also an Italian tennis player, secured two Grand Slam titles and the ATP Finals championship in 2025, ending the year ranked second, but still did not receive the honor. La Gazzetta dello Sport is one of Italy’s largest-circulation and Europe’s oldest sports newspapers.

Sinner

In addition to winning the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and the ATP Finals, Sinner also triumphed at the Paris Masters, China Open, and Vienna tournaments this year. His $5.071 million prize in Turin set a record for the highest single payout in ATP Tour history, helping him surpass Alcaraz to lead the 2025 men’s tennis prize money rankings.

Musetti

Compared to Sinner, Musetti’s results this season were somewhat less impressive, but 2025 marked the most outstanding year of his career so far. Although he did not win any titles this year, Musetti finished runner-up at the Monte Carlo Masters, Chengdu, and Greece tournaments, reached the French Open semifinals and US Open quarterfinals, entered the world top ten for the first time, and qualified for the ATP Finals for the first time.

"This has truly been an incredible season, full of many firsts: I broke into the top ten, reached my first Masters final in Monte Carlo, and qualified for the Finals for the first time," Musetti said in a post-award interview. "I’ve always been striving for this kind of progress. Sinner and Alcaraz? I’m working hard to close the gap with them. I faced both this year, which helped me realize where I can improve. That’s why I invited Jose Perlas to join my team; he will co-coach me alongside Simone Tartalini. Hopefully, this will be the turning point for a breakthrough in my career."

Italy successfully defended their Davis Cup title this year

When La Gazzetta dello Sport announced the Athlete of the Year, many outside observers couldn’t understand why Musetti was chosen over Sinner. Some speculate the decision was influenced by Sinner’s absence from this year’s Davis Cup. His withdrawal caused a strong reaction in the Italian tennis community, as he was the team’s key player. Sinner had an undefeated Davis Cup record in 2023 and 2024, helping Italy win the championship last year. However, even without Sinner and Musetti, Italy managed to successfully defend the title this year. Sinner explained that he withdrew to gain an extra week of rest, aiming to enter the Australian season in peak condition.

(Article and editing by Wang Fei, images courtesy of Visual China)