Iga Swiatek is calling for a sit-down between players and tournament organisers at Roland Garros over ongoing prize money disagreements.
Both Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff have said they would skip Grand Slams in protest, demanding a fairer revenue split. But Swiatek isn’t quite ready to take that step.
“Boycotting the tournament, it’s a bit of an extreme situation. Hopefully, before Roland Garros, there’s going to be an opportunity to have these types of meetings, and we’ll see how they go,” she said.
Kim Clijsters explains how she would approach the Grand Slam prize money dispute
Speaking on the latest episode of ‘Love All’, Clijsters shared her perspective.
“It is not a new topic. I feel like years ago, when I was a youngster growing up with Venus [Williams] and Serena [Williams] as role models, when it came to equal pay for women. I know Venus was in the meeting rooms at Grand Slams and talking to tournament directors, proving a point of why we deserve to be paid equally. She succeeded,” said Clijsters.
“The word boycott was being thrown out at times as well.
“I think where Iga [Swiatek] stands with her comments was that ‘okay, maybe boycotting right now seems a little extreme, but let’s keep negotiating and then if nothing happens let’s see’.
“I think the approach I would take is, let’s have these top players sit in the meeting rooms and see what the challenges are.
Clijsters went on to mention which players she believes need to step up if meaningful change is going to happen.
Clijsters also touched on how current prize money levels affect those outside the spotlight.
This year, just 446 women have earned more than $10,000 on the WTA Tour. Those numbers pale in comparison to other major sports and underline why so many players are speaking out now.
Elena Rybakina discusses the Grand Slam boycott debate
Sabalenka, Swiatek, and Gauff weren’t the only ones addressing boycott questions during media day at the Italian Open.
World number two Elena Rybakina was also asked about the possibility of players boycotting a Grand Slam to push for change.
When asked if she could see herself or other players joining a boycott, Rybakina replied:
“It’s a tough question because we had so many things in the past where players could come together and boycott, but it never happened,” she said.
“If the majority says we are boycotting, we are not playing, then of course I’m up for it. It’s not an issue.”
Rybakina also brought up another issue that gets overlooked when it comes to tennis prize money: taxes.
“A lot of people are not aware that there are taxes which are big. You even make more prize money, but you give it all to the taxes. It’s a different topic.”
No matter how you look at it, this story isn’t going away anytime soon.
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