Denis Shapovalov realizes hard truth about the gender gap in sport - UBITENNIS
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Denis Shapovalov realizes hard truth about the gender gap in sport

Denis Shapovalov spoke about gender equality to the players tribune.

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9 months ago

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Denis Shapovalov (@marioboc17 - Twitter)

The Canadian came out on The Players Tribune yesterday to discuss the unfortunate issues with pay equity and gender equality.

 

It’s unfortunate that in 2023 we still live in a world where men and women are treated based on their gender. Men still to this day depending on the sport and country make astronomically more than women.

Denis Shapovalov who has been on the ATP tour for the last six years came to that realization after beginning to date a fellow tennis player and world number 130 Mirjam Bjorklund.

“I used to be naive about tennis,” Shapovalov said. When I started out, I kind of assumed that male and female pros were treated the same way. It just made sense, you know? I mean, why would it be any different?“

He recounts how he met his girlfriend and that she opened his eyes to the harsh reality of life on the WTA tour when you are not a known player and just starting your pro career.

Bjorklund had a career year last year and for the first time qualified for a WTA 250, 500, and 1000 event, and Shapovalov knew she was on her way to being successful.

He initially thought she would at least make $7000 for making the main draw but she confirmed to him that the WTA would only pay her $1000 for making it that far.

“I was like, “What are you talking about? How is that possible??”

On the eve of International Women’s Day Shapovalov spoke about how serious and hurtful it can be to get all this success and not be fairly compensated for it.

“I’m not sure everyone realizes how damaging this is for tennis. Tomorrow is International Women’s Day, and I want to talk about the gender gap. It’s so unfair. It doesn’t make sense at all. And it matters because the expenses are crazy in tennis: You travel all year, you stay in hotels, and you pay your coaching staff. The big stars don’t have to worry about it, but many on the tour are struggling just to break even. For these players, prize money is not about getting a nice lump of extra cash. It’s about survival. 

“Unfortunately, it seems that if you are a female player, your chances of surviving as a pro are a lot lower … because you are a woman”. 

Shapovalov recounts how he watched his girlfriend play Daria Saville in the first round in Washington, DC, and that Saville who won the first-round match won $4,100 while an ATP player wins $14, 280 for winning their first round.

“It’s less than a third! And fine, they are different tournaments, but even if you compare it to the ATP 250s, the numbers don’t make sense. That WTA 250 in D.C. had players like Jessica Pegula, who was top 10 in the world. The champ made $33,200. This may sound like a lot, but imagine how many years of hard work you need to win a tournament like that. It’s insane. Then compare it to men’s tennis.

“I made the final of the ATP 250 in Seoul last September. As a runner-up, I got $100,000. I mean, it’s not even close!”

He spoke about the growth of the women’s tour and the work Billie Jean King did to get the WTA to where it is today but still thinks it hasn’t reached its peak yet.

“I know that tennis is by far the best major sport in the world for women in terms of the way these prizes are shared. It has grown so much over the last 30 years thanks to Billie Jean King and the formation of the WTA Players’ Council. The Slams are doing well. It’s also great that the WTA has made free hospitality mandatory and increased prize money at the Challenger tournaments. Things are definitely going in the right direction. But overall the gap is still huge.

“Maybe I’m being cynical, but I think some people might think of gender equality as mere political correctness. Deep down they don’t feel that women deserve as much, you know? And that’s terrible”. 

Denis Shapoavalov is competing at Indian Wells in the California desert this week and will be the number 25 seed at the tournament.

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Hamad Medjedovic moves to 2-0 in Red Group at the Next Gen Finals in Jeddah

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12 hours ago

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29/11/2023

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Hamad Medjedovic edged past Luca Van Assche 4-2 2-4 4-3 (9-7) 4-1 to move to 2-0 In Red Group at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah one day after winning a marathon five-set match against Alex Michelsen. 

 

Medjedovic broke serve in the third game of the opening set to take a 2-1 lead. He held serve and saved two break points in the sixth game to close out the first set 4-2. 

Van Assche saved three break points at 2-2 before breaking serve in the sixth game  with a running forehand pass to seal the second set 4-2. 

Medjedovic earned a break point in the first game of the third set, when Van Assche made a double fault. Van Assche saved them to hold on his serve. Both players held on serve en route to a tie-break. Van Assche raced out to a 5-1 lead. Medjedovic won three consecutive points to claw his way back to 4-5. Van Assche earned three set points at 6-4, 6-5 and 7-6, but Medjedovic won the final three points to win the tie-break 9-7. 

Medjedovic left the court for nine minutes for a bathroom break. 

Medjedovic broke serve in the fourth game to take a 3-1 lead. When he was serving out the match, he saved three break points as he closed out the win with two unreturned serves. 

“For sure the tie-break changed a lot of things in this match. He had three set points. I stayed focused on the important points. I was consistent, hitting the ball hard, and I am glad that I won the tie-break”, said Medjedovic. 

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Abdullah Shelbayh upsets Alex Michelsen to win his first win at the Next Gen Finals in Jeddah

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16 hours ago

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29/11/2023

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Jordan’s wild card Abdullah Shelbayh beat world number 97 Alex Michelsen 4-2 1-4 4-0 4-0 to clinch his fourth top 100 win. Shelbayh moves to 1-1 in Red Group. 

 

Shelbayh hit 26 winners, including seven aces. The Asian player will face Serbia’s Hamad Medjedovic in his third round robin match. 

Shelbayh earned the first break in the third game of the opening set to take a 2-1 lead. The wild card held his next two service games at 30 to close out the first set 4-2. 

Michelsen, who reached the ATP 250 final in Newport last summer, broke in the second game of the second set to take a 2-0 lead, when Shelbayh made a backhand error. 

Michelsen earned a break point in the first game of the third set, but Shelbayh saved it with an ace. The Jordanan player held serve before breaking serve to close out the third set 4-0. Shelbayh won four consecutive games with two breaks of serve to win the fourth set 4-0. 

“Having the opportunity to play here now to finish here, I could not ask for a better end to the year. I appreciate all the support throughout the week that I have been receiving already, throughout the year and from the Arab world especially. It makes me happy to represent my country. There is some pressure but you feel like it’s good pressure to have on you shoulders when you are representing your country and the region you come from”,said Shelbayh. 

Shelbayh improved his ATP ranking from world 470 to 185. His tennis idol is Rafael Nadal. Shelbayh has trained at the Rafa Nadal for more than five years. Toni Nadal flew to Jordan when Shelbayh was 13 years old to recruit him to train at the Rafa Nadal Academy. He became the first Jordanan player to win a main-draw ATP Tour match last April against Elias Ymer in Banja Luka. 

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Arthur Fils eases past Flavio Cobolli to move to 2-0 at the Next Gen Finals in Jeddah

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19 hours ago

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29/11/2023

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World number 36 Arthur Fils eased past Flavio Cobolli 4-1 4-2 4-2 in 59 minutes to move to 2-0 in Green Group at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah. Fils won 72% of his first service points and fired five aces. 

 

Fils saved a break point in the first game on the deciding point. The Frenchman broke serve in the second game and rallied from 0-30 down to hold serve in the third game. 

Fils served out the first set 4-1 with a hold at love. 

Cobolli made a double fault at 30-30 in the first game of the second set, but Fils broke serve when Cobolli hit his backhand into the net. 

Cobolli saved a break point with an ace on the deciding point in the third game. Fils won his next two service games with ease to seal the second set 4-2. The Frenchman dropped two points on serve in the second set.

Fils earned an early break in the first game of the third set. Cobolli broke straight back to draw level to 1-1. Fils broke for the second time at love in the third game with a backhand down the line return winner and sealed the win on his second match point. 

Fils, who beat Luca Nardi in five sets in his opening match, will face Dominic Stricker in his third round-robin match. 

“I played very nice today. I served very good, and I was moving well on the court, so I am very happy with it. Tomorrow I have a good match against a great opponent. He already beat me once this year, so let’s what I can do”, said Arthur Fils. 

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