ATP Grand Slam WTA
Top players press Grand Slams for bigger share, benefits and a player council
Top-ranked players seek larger revenue share, benefits and a new player council from the Slams. Now.
A group of top-10 players delivered a second letter to the four Grand Slam organizers pressing for a larger slice of revenues, new benefit contributions and formal representation. The July 30 letter asks the Slams to raise the players’ share from 16 percent to 22 percent by 2030, to fund pension, health and maternity benefits at $12 million annually by that year, and to create a new player council to give athletes more influence.
Signatories included Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and Jack Draper. The letter was not signed by Novak Djokovic, unlike an earlier player letter in March. The second letter spelled out specific benchmarks the players want the four tournaments to meet.
Players working with Larry Scott as a consultant have held meetings with leaders of the All England Club, the French Tennis Federation, Tennis Australia and the U.S. Tennis Association. All four tournament organizations were asked to reply to the July 30 letter, and all provided responses.
The USTA reply, dated Aug. 18 and signed by Brian Vahaly and Stacey Allaster, noted recent prize-money increases and framed future gains in the context of collaboration. “As you are aware, we have always been willing to increase compensation for players—as evidenced by the 57% growth of the US Open purse over the past five years—particularly when additional collaboration on the part of the players helps to create additional revenue,” Vahaly and Allaster wrote. “For example, this year’s significant increase in compensation to $90 million reflects the addition of an extra day to the main draw singles competition and the resulting contribution made by players.” They also wrote they wanted “to reiterate our commitment to engaging in direct, honest and transparent discussions with the players to build a stronger future for the entire tennis ecosystem—including a healthier calendar, enhanced player consultation, and greater financial value for all involved.”
The March letter followed an antitrust lawsuit filed by the Professional Tennis Players’ Association against the WTA and ATP tours. The filing sought greater player compensation and other governance changes; the WTA and ATP filed a motion to dismiss the case in May. The PTPA has since added the four Grand Slam organizers as defendants. “This is a necessary next step to guarantee accountability from all parties,” the PTPA said, “and accelerate long-overdue reform across the entire tennis ecosystem.”
ATP French Open Grand Slam
Fonseca’s Paris surge: a 19-year-old handling the hard part at Roland Garros
Fonseca’s Paris run: the 19-year-old beat Djokovic and Casper Ruud, showing power and poise. Greatly
Joao Fonseca followed a headline-making third-round victory over Novak Djokovic with another major statement at Roland Garros, defeating two-time finalist Casper Ruud in four hours and minus four minutes of drama, 7-5, 7-6 (8), 5-7, 6-2. The 19-year-old Brazilian, already one of the tournament’s most talked-about young players, is now one of two teenagers through to the quarterfinals alongside Rafael Jodar.
Fonseca’s path here included a remarkable comeback against Djokovic, becoming just the second man to beat Djokovic at Roland Garros after dropping the first two sets, a mark previously set by Jurgen Melzer in 2010. On Sunday he traded heavy forehands and long rallies with the 27-year-old clay specialist before pulling away late. The final numbers underscored how close the contest was: each man finished with 51 winners and an identical 52 errors. Fonseca’s backhand, however, proved the decisive edge in several key moments.
Asked about his versatility in a post-match interview with Mats Wilander, Fonseca said: “It’s more like heart, or mind, I don’t know, I just try to be me on the court. Try to be happy, try to hit winners, try to hit good shots, try to be entertainment … try to be me, and that’s what it is.”
Those words echoed across a week that also drew the attention of Gustavo Kuerten, who watched the match and appeared pleased with the way Fonseca is building on a Brazilian legacy. Fonseca is a 6-foot-2 right-hander with notable power and a broad set of weapons; his temperament and shotmaking have become a central part of his rise.
The run here follows a turbulent sophomore season: a nagging back injury that affected his off-season preparation, an early Australian Open exit and a 1-3 record heading into Indian Wells. He has been careful about expectations, saying in Monte Carlo, “I think the expectations are going to come. People see young players doing great things, and they pull us into the top of the rankings. People need time. Everyone has their own time, so I want to do my history. I hope I’ll be there competing against them [top players], but people need to understand that I need time to become what they want me to do and I want to become.”
Fonseca’s run now brings fresh comparisons and cautions; Jim Courier advised, “Be careful of that hangover.” Still, after five-set wins over Dino Prizmic and Djokovic and Sunday’s victory over Ruud, Fonseca’s immediate problem is simple: maintain the level that has taken him this far. I just try to be me on the court. Try to be happy, try to hit winners, try to hit good shots, try to be entertainment … and that’s what it is. Joao Fonseca
ATP French Open Grand Slam
Roland Garros fines Adolfo Daniel Vallejo $65,000 after sexist remark about chair umpire
Vallejo fined $65,000 by Roland Garros after saying the match ‘has to be refereed by a man’ in 5 sets
Roland Garros has imposed a $65,000 fine on Paraguayan Adolfo Daniel Vallejo after comments he made about the chair umpire following his second-round match.
The 22-year-old, ranked 71st, lost a nearly five-hour, five-set match to 17-year-old Frenchman Moise Kouame. Vallejo led 5-2 in the fifth set before the contest was decided in a tiebreaker. After the match he criticized Brazil’s Ana Carvalho, saying she was not strong enough to handle the partisan crowd and that such a match “has to be refereed by a man.”
“It’s a very demanding crowd and you need a lot of strength to go against the crowd,” he told Spanish-language outlet Clay. “The crowd was very out of line, but I understand they’re supporting their compatriot. It’s quite an intense crowd and that’s why I was prepared; I already knew it would be like that and, to be honest, it didn’t harm me, but rather strengthened him.”
Roland Garros and the French Tennis Federation called the remarks “unacceptable” and said Vallejo would receive a “significant sanction.” “The competence of an umpire is not determined by their gender, but by their professionalism and ability to officiate at the highest level,” the statement read. “The outcome of a sporting event, whether positive or negative, can never justify or excuse such remarks.”
Tournament director Amelie Mauresmo told reporters the fine was “representing roughly half of his prize money.” Organizers noted that players reaching the second round at the French Open receive 130,000 euros ($151,000) and later clarified that the fine was $65,000, not euros. “This is clearly unacceptable,” Mauresmo said. “Once again, such remarks have no place here.”
Vallejo subsequently said his comments had been misrepresented and issued an apology on social media. “my comments were not meant in the way they have been understood.” “I have respect for the umpire and for the job they do, after a [five-hour] battle I was very heated and with a lot of emotions, I apologize,” Vallejo wrote on Instagram late on Friday. “I also want to clarify that I didn’t blame the lost [sic] on her, she did a good job throughout the whole match.”
ATP French Open Grand Slam
Cobolli weathers late scare to reach Roland Garros Round of 16
Cobolli escaped a fourth-set collapse, winning the tiebreak to reach the Roland Garros Round of 16..
Flavio Cobolli survived a tense finish to his fourth-round match, holding off a spirited rally from Zachary Svajda to reach the Roland Garros Round of 16.
Cobolli moved ahead 5-1 in the fourth set with hopes of finishing in under three hours, but Svajda fought back to win five consecutive games. The No. 10 seed was broken twice while serving for the match and missed a match point at 5-4. Cobolli dropped a mini break at 5-4 in the tiebreak but steadied to close out the victory and avoid a deciding set.
Speaking on Court Philippe Chatrier after the match, Cobolli did not hide how close the moment came to slipping away. “The only thing that I understood today is that the match is never done. I almost sh\ my pants,” he told the Court Philippe Chatrier crowd. “Now I’m happy but I’m still nervous. I have to recover a bit now.”
In the press, he reflected on how pressure affects his game. “I think when the match is almost done, you start to think of it, and that’s the problem with my character, because I don’t like to think a bit. I just want to play my best tennis possible. But if I think, especially if I’m nervous, I start to play a different tennis, and of course the Chatrier is not easy for everyone. So I think also the court was tough.”
Asked about the celebration on court that followed, Cobolli said, “I think they deserve to win the Champions League,” in reference to the ceremony he returned to Chatrier to attend.
The 24-year-old reached the third Saturday at a major for the second time, matching his best Grand Slam run after a quarterfinal appearance at Wimbledon last summer. He is the only man to reach the round of 16 without dropping a set this fortnight. Cobolli has 13 wins in this season’s European clay swing, including victories over Alexander Zverev in Munich and a Top 10 win over Daniil Medvedev en route to a Madrid quarterfinal.
Cobolli will next face the winner of fourth-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime and Alejandro Tabilo. Two countrymen, Matteo Berrettini and Matteo Arnaldi, were due on court later Monday.
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