Sabalenka ready to boycott Grand Slams over prize money

World number one Aryna Sabalenka said on Tuesday she was ready to boycott the Grand Slam tournaments in order to have a greater share of the prize money.

“I feel like the show is on us. Without us there wouldn’t be a tournament and there wouldn’t be that entertainment,” the four-time Grand Slam winner told a press conference at the Italian Open.

“I feel like definitely we deserve to be paid more percentage.

“I think at some point we will boycott. I feel like that’s going to be the only way to fight for our rights.

“We girls can easily get together and go for this because some of the things I feel like it’s really unfair to the players. I think at some point it’s going to get to this.”

Last year almost all the leading players signed two letters to the four Grand Slam bosses demanding an increase in prize money, payments into a player welfare fund to improve retirement and maternity benefits, as well as involvement in decisions that affected them.

The letters set a target of a 22-percent share in tournament revenue, which would bring the majors in line with the nine combined 1000-level events run by the ATP men’s tour and the women’s WTA tour.

However Poland’s Iga Swiatek, a four-time French Open singles champion, believes boycotting tournaments “is a bit extreme”.

“I think the most important thing honestly is to have proper communication and discussions with the governing bodies so we have some space to talk and maybe negotiate,” said Swiatek, who has also won Wimbledon and the US Open.

“Hopefully before Roland Garros there’s going to be an opportunity to have these type of meetings and we’ll see how they go.”

On Monday, players said in a statement that an announcement by the French Open last month of a 9.5-percent prize money rise was not good enough.

It said that last year Roland Garros generated 395 million euros ($463 mn), a 14-percent increase.

However the total purse went up by just 5.4 percent, reducing player share of revenue to 14.3 percent.

It estimated that this year’s revenues would pass 400 mn euros, leaving the player cut still below 15 percent.

GAUFF SAYS PLAYERS MUST FORM UNION: World number four Gauff said she could “100% see” players boycotting a Grand Slam if they took the decision together as one.

“It’s not about me. It’s about the future of our sport and also the current players who aren’t getting as much benefits, maybe, as even some of the top players are getting when it comes to sponsorship and things like that,” Gauff said.

“We’re making money off court. When you look at the (players ranked) 50 to 100, 50 to 200, how much money each Slam makes, it’s kind of unfortunate where the 200 best tennis players are living paycheck to paycheck.”

Gauff also suggested the players must form a union, highlighting how the WNBA basketball players’ union reached a tentative agreement on a collective bargaining deal earlier this year after nearly 17 months of negotiations.

“Just taking what the WNBA accomplished. They also have a union, so I think that helps,” she added.

“From the things I’ve seen with other sports, usually to make massive progress and things like this, it takes a union.”

Agencies