The WTA tour has been having a hard time this season. Funding troubles, scheduling issues, and the player’s complaints have affected the organization. Fans have also pointed out the deteriorating state of the WTA over the past few months. Yuri Polsky, the Vice President of Kazakhstan’s Tennis Federation, has spoken about WTA nearing bankruptcy in the next few years.
Polsky also mentioned that the ATP is in much better shape as compared to the WTA. But these claims have been brushed aside by WTA chairman Steve Simon. He said, “The WTA is in a healthy financial position, we are excited about our strong future during which we will continue grow and expand women’s tennis.” Simon went on to say that the ATP merger has not been taken under consideration.
WTA denies that they are close to bankruptcy.
Steve Simon denies Kazakhstan Tennis Federation VP’s claims that WTA is in financials crisis.
He also says that a merger with ATP is not being considered.
“The WTA is in a healthy financial position, a merger with the ATP is not… pic.twitter.com/K4EoKxhM3M
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) October 23, 2023
The WTA has promised the players an increase of $400 million in compensation to players over the next decade. The prize money in events will also be increased, which will remove the wage gap for the women players. There were talks about the possibility of a merger a few months back.
ATP and WTA merger not able to move to the next level
There were talks of ATP and WTA coming together to uplift the current status of the sport. The top-level executives from both organisations met in London last month. But there has been no movement since then. The organisations have not talked about the merger ever since. Simon had made it clear that, currently, there are no plans for a merger.
There have been no comments regarding the merger from ATP Tour chairman Andrea Gaudenzi. With the potential threat of a Saudi Arabia takeover, the sport does need a unified stand to combat outsiders. However, there is no mutual understanding between the ATP and WTA. The sport will only grow stronger if there is a merger.
Idk if it’s likely or not. The WTA needs it to be likely, but I guess it comes down to whether the ATP thinks a merger will be a long term net positive, because short term they’ll be eating a lot of the WTA’s financial issues. Personally I think it would be a great thing longterm
— 🎾🤙🏼 (@tennisinaloha) October 21, 2023
Gaudenzi and Simon will have to sort out their differences to take the discussions forward. The differences between both the organizations will come under commonly shared values. The fans will hope that the problems are looked after in the next season. The sport needs a change for its betterment in the future, and there are still possibilities of joining hands in times of crisis.