In the evolving world of professional tennis, Nick Kyrgios has reignited the debate of equal prize money for ATP and WTA players at Grand Slam tournaments. Kyrgios has questioned the 50-year legacy that started with the US Open way back in 1973, when equal prize money was introduced in a Grand Slam, followed by other majors over the year.
In a bid to question this established norm, Kyrgios cited examples from the 2022 Australian Open matches. Kyrgios voiced his discontent, highlighting the stark difference in the duration of matches in the men’s and women’s singles draws as a valid reason for not having equal prize money for both genders.
The Australian compared his nearly four-hour campaign to Elina Svitolina’s 40-minute match, while stating, “I played for four hours at the AO [Australian Open], then Svitolina played for like 40 minutes and we both got paid the same.” Kyrgios emphasized his concern about equal compensation for unequal playing times.
From @TheAthletic: Nick Kyrgios speaks his mind on not missing tennis and criticizes the idea of equal prize money and joint play at Grand Slams. “If the WNBA said, ‘Let’s merge’, the NBA would ridicule them.” https://t.co/IU1q96mXDV pic.twitter.com/b0Y21cUzUb
— The New York Times (@nytimes) December 12, 2023
Kyrgios was referring to Svitolina’s quick loss to Victoria Azarenka with a score of 6-0, 6-2 in the third round, while he had endured a tough 4-set battle against Daniil Medvedev in his defeat to the Russian.
Stirring up the prize money issue, Kyrgios also brought up the contentious debate on the ATP and WTA merger, expressing concerns about a tennis environment that, in his view, lacks fairness in its structure. As discussions about the potential tour merger persist, let’s find out more about it.
Nick Kyrgios is at the forefront of ATP-WTA merger debate
As discussions unfold regarding a potential merger between the ATP and WTA Tours, Nick Kyrgios remains a familiar voice in the ongoing debate amidst his critique of equal prize money. Notably, two ATP tour legends had voiced their approval of the amalgamation of ATP and WTA.
The catalyst for this merger was none other than the retired tennis legend Roger Federer, who, in April 2020, during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, initiated a discussion on the topic when, during the women’s tour, the WTA started running into losses. Federer took to social media to propose the merger, and his close friend Rafael Nadal echoed similar sentiments.
Nick Kyrgios, known for his outspoken views, didn’t firmly support the idea; instead, he raised the question, “Does that mean we merge the draws?????” While not explicitly opposing the idea, Kyrgios had underlined that he had some doubts.
“Why is tennis the only sport that deals with this stuff?”
Nick Kyrgios is firmly against merging the men’s and women’s tours. He also has some issues with equal prize money at the Grand Slams.
Exclusive interview with @MattFutterman: https://t.co/6v1KcTyGQl pic.twitter.com/2ScEHPNgrZ
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) December 11, 2023
Expressing his current views on the proposed integration, he compared tennis to basketball and wondered why the sport of tennis should face these problems alone. Kyrgios contrasted it with a hypothetical situation where the WNBA’s joining the NBA would probably be met with ridicule!
He asserted, “If we’re merging, you merge the draws, you merge everything,” which was not practically possible. Kyrgios remains at the forefront of this debate on the ATP-WTA tour merger, which could significantly change the future landscape of tennis.