World number one Iga Swiatek expressed great dissatisfaction with the work of the WTA.
“A lot can be improved. We, the players, are not happy with next year’s schedule and the fact that the number of mandatory tournaments and the restrictions related to how we withdraw from them have increased. We want to change this. We need more balance and time at home.
Sometimes we hit our heads against the wall. Some decisions seem to be the result of promises made to third parties: federations, competition organizers. And we find out about them when they are already accepted. This causes dissatisfaction. Only some players knew about the calendar reform and the WTA should not allow this situation to be repeated; after all, it is believed that this is an organization created for female players,” the four-time Grand Slam champion said in an interview with the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita.
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The 22-year-old Polish tennis player is an outspoken critic of the WTA management, like many of her colleagues. In early October, Arina Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina, Marketa Vondrousova, Ons Jabeur and other star players approached the association with strict demands to improve their working conditions. Swiatek then sent a separate letter noting that she was “part of a united front that wants real change.”
The tennis players’ problems have not been resolved since then. WTA director Steve Simon held personal meetings with them, but it has not yet been possible to reach some kind of agreement that suits all parties. Furthermore, the conflict has only intensified. This was clearly evident during the scandalous Final Tournament in Cancun, when many stars openly criticized the association designed to protect their rights.
Iga Swiatek
Photo: Getty Images
Swiatek’s main complaint in his latest statement is the schedule. In the 2024 season, the tennis players’ agenda will be even busier, although this year there were many complaints about the density of the calendar. Important changes: in January there will be new WTA 125 tournaments in Canberra (Australia) and Da Nang (Vietnam), the WTA tournaments in Linz, Strasbourg, Monterrey and Seoul move to the 500 category, the WTA tournaments in Dubai and Doha have a 1000 category category, the WTA 1000 tournament in Wuhan has returned to the calendar.
Some competitions have changed dates: the Monterrey WTA 500 tournament will be held in August instead of February, the San Diego 500 tournament will be held in September instead of February, the Monastir WTA 250 tournament will be held in September instead of October, the competition of the same category in Mérida will be in October instead of February.
The WTA 250 tournaments in Lyon, Lausanne, Warsaw and Cluj-Napoca are missing from the new calendar, but this does not alleviate the schedule. 7 out of 10 “thousands” were extended to two weeks. In addition, a WTA 500 tournament will be held in Washington during the Paris Olympic Games. It is also unknown what tournaments will be played in November and December, including the date and location of the Final and final part of the Billie Jean King Cup. Overall, the 2024 season will be at least two weeks longer than the previous one.
There are certain oddities in the calendar that can cause complaints from tennis players. Particularly striking is the celebration of the “five hundred” in Washington during the Olympic Games. However, players still cannot participate in all competitions in a year. You have to miss some tournaments.
Mayar Sherif
Photo: Mike Stobe/Getty Images
Swiatek’s complaints about the schedule and beyond were supported by Egypt’s world 59th racket Mayar Sherif, who launched his tirade following Iga’s statement.
“Many things on the WTA tour are unsatisfactory. For example, balls. I don’t understand! People have been talking about this topic for years. I recently talked about this with Alizée Cornet and she told me that arguing is a waste of time. She told me that when she started playing on the tour they were already talking about the ball problem. Fifteen years later, nothing has changed. I do not understand, really. In the era of social media things are not going well, although the WTA is now trying to make some changes to improve certain aspects. For example, cash prizes.
Calendar for 2024? To be honest, he was terribly fed up with everything! Why should there be more than 80% difficult tournaments? This is not the case with the ATP; They have many more clay court tournaments than us. They have a clay tour in February, followed by another four-week tour after Wimbledon. This is a way to give all players a chance to succeed. Not only for those who play well on hard courts, but also for those who prefer clay courts. In the WTA you can win 0 matches on clay in a season and enter the top 10 in the rankings, there are clear examples. The reverse situation is impossible.
I don’t know where this disdain for clay comes from, one thing is clear: every year we have fewer clay tournaments on the calendar. After Wimbledon, there are only two WTA 250 clay court tournaments left. Now, according to the new rules, if you are in the top 30, you cannot participate in the WTA 250 tournaments. It turns out that there is only one WTA 500 tournament on clay left for the entire year. It is a pity. Currently there are more tournaments on grass than on clay. How many countries in the world have grass fields? How many are unpaved? The girls who play on clay have a little more variety in their tennis, but they can’t show it because 80% of the tournaments are played on hard courts.
In addition, the WTA is obliged to protect us in terms of programming. You can’t let a girl play at 0:00. There should be a rule that a match should not start after 23:00 because it will definitely end the next day. If she wins, the tennis player will have to play two matches on the same day. The most important thing should be the player, not the television or the audience. We understand that money is important, but if a tennis player is not well, the money is not worth it,” Sherif said in statements to Puntodebreak.
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Swiatek also admitted in his interview that he is in a more privileged position than most other tennis players.
“I hope we can change something, for example, the rules for refusing to participate in tournaments. I’m in a situation where I can afford to take my family on a tournament trip, but not everyone can. Many tennis players choose to save all their money because they can barely pay their coaches. Although there is a difference between traveling and home. I want to spend more time in the place where you grew up. I often miss Warsaw,” Swiatek said.
Iga Swiatek with her father Tomas after winning the final in Cancun
Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
In 2023, Iga earned $9.86 million in tennis prize money, not including earnings from endorsement deals. This season, four more tennis players have won more than $5 million in prize money: Aryna Sabalenka (8.2), Cori Gauff (6.7), Jessica Pegula (6) and Elena Rybakina (5.5). 15 tennis players received more than 2 million dollars, 42 – more than 1 million dollars, 101 – more than 500 thousand dollars, 157 – more than 300 thousand dollars, 193 – more than 200 thousand dollars, 272 – more than 100 thousand dollars .
Swiatek can really afford what most tennis players can’t. Her colleagues in the top 20 of the WTA ranking are also, to put it mildly, in a good position in economic terms. It cannot be said that the rest of the top hundred are swimming in money, but the conditions are quite bearable. For the first time in history, more than 100 tennis players earned at least $500,000 per season. This indicates that the WTA is systematically increasing the salaries of tennis players, but the current pace is not enough for them.
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The big question is where to get the funds to increase salaries even further. The WTA’s annual revenue is $100 million and women’s tennis is not as popular as men’s (the ATP’s annual revenue is $250 million). Steve Simon does a lot to ensure that tennis players have decent working conditions. Of course, this does not mean that their work can be considered ideal.
Steve Simon
Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
In particular, the decision to hold the Final Tournament in Cancun without preparing the appropriate infrastructure is a major blow to Simon as a manager. But he can’t just find money out of thin air for tennis players unless there is a sharp rise in the sport’s popularity. There are no prerequisites for this yet. There are no figures at the level of Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams on the horizon.
It only remains to state that the differences between the WTA management and the best tennis players remain unresolved. This is not a good time for business and sports in general. The parties are not willing to reach agreements, so in 2024 the conflict may become even more serious.
THE NAIS IS OFFICIAL EDITOR ON NAIS NEWS