People who play Tennis should be better taken care of
The difference is huge and it needs to be taken into account when tennis players ask for more money.
Chances are you will have gone through the hassle of personally mapping out a schedule for the year, of booking your tickets as well as paying for them and, of course, paying for the traveling coach that is almost mandatory for any player trying to fight their way up the ranking list.
So when Novak Djokovic gathered the players together at the end of the ATP meeting in Melbourne so that the question of prize money and creating a players union could be discussed, it threw a perfectly legitimate spotlight on a subject that is obviously paramount in a player’s life.
But, if there are queries about a few details, there can be no denying that the general topic of money and unions became the hottest talking point around the corridors and player areas underneath Rod Laver Arena during the first week of the Australian Open.
So there has to be a balance but, from the players’ point of view, more could be done to ensure that there are more players earning a decent living from the game.
About four years ago, Djokovic, Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray asked to meet with all four Grand Slam chairmen during the tournament at Indian Wells.
How he intends to proceed will become clear as the year unfolds but, using the game’s history as a guide, it is useful to remember that nearly all the major changes in this sport have been initiated by the players.
If the ATP’s Wimbledon boycott in 1973 did anything (and it actually changed the game) it proved that, once the players become united and focused, they can lead the game in any direction they want.
In 1990, at the urging of players like Raymond Moore and Harold Solomon, the players and tournament directors broke away from the ITF and formed the ATP tour under the leadership of Hamilton Jordan and then Mark Miles.
300-ranked tennis player is lucky to find two tournaments a month enabling him to win $10,000, even if he wins it.