Iga Swiatek believes there is still more work to be done regarding equal prize money in tennis after her recent triumph in Stuttgart saw the Pole earn less than a quarter of what Carlos Alcaraz did in Barcelona.
Last week at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, the three-time Grand Slam winner took home just over 100,000 euros (£88,600) after winning the WTA 500 event. In comparison, Alcaraz won 475,000 (£421,000) following his triumph over Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Barcelona final which is an ATP 500 event. Although these two categories of tournaments are slightly different with the women winning slightly fewer ranking points than men (470 compared to 500).
Speaking about the subject ahead of her first match at the Madrid Open, Swiatek said the financial support in tennis is better than other women’s sports. According to Forbes magazine, seven out of the 10 highest-paid female athletes in 2022 were tennis players. However, the world No.1 believes there is still more that could be done at the Tour level.
“I think (tennis) is better than most sports, but still there is a lot we can work on in terms of, you know, getting equal prize money on some WTA tournaments compared to ATP on the same level,” Swiatek told reporters on Wednesday.
“Grand Slams are already even, as we know. That’s nice, but for sure it would be good if WTA would focus on that, but I don’t really want to get into that, because it’s a lot of business and sometimes politics.
“I don’t think I have, you know, a lot of influence. I just can say that it would be nice for our sport if it was equal, especially because we kind of do the same work.”
Some argue that paying men more at events is justifiable as their Tour earns a higher revenue than the women. According to a Sky News report in March this year, it is estimated that the ATP’s commercial revenue is roughly three times higher than the WTA.
Another criticism that has been mentioned in the past is the lack of consistency in women’s tennis which Swiatek believes is no longer an issue. The 21-year-old won 37 matches in a row last year and has contested 12 Tour finals since the start of 2022, winning 10 of those.
“I also get people who are saying that men’s tennis is nicer to watch and guys can do more because they are physically and biologically stronger,” said Swiatek.
“But I think there were a lot of people, for example a couple of years ago, who were saying that (the women’s game is) not consistent and that’s a shame and it should be better, but right now basically I think, you know, we are even more consistent than the guys with our game.
“Watching women’s tennis gives the same emotions, and sometimes even like more emotions, because we are women and we are a little bit more emotional.
“But, yeah, I think it would be nice if WTA could make it even.”
Equal prize money has been implemented at every Grand Slam tournament since Wimbledon in 2007. Although the first major event to do this was the US Open in 1973.
Swiatek will return to action later this week at the Madrid Open where she will play her first match against lucky loser Julia Grabher. She is bidding to win the tournament for the first time in her career.
