*Official* Tennis Thread

[Jono]

The argument is not about whether womens' tennis is popular or not

It's about whether it is as popular as the mens' game and the fact is that it isn't at the moment.

Therefore, it could reasonably be argued that the men deserve a bigger slice of the prize pool than their female counterparts

Presumably based on this criteria you agree that Serena should have earned more than Novak at last year's US Open?

 

[social]

Presumably based on this criteria you agree that Serena should have earned more than Novak at last year's US Open?

Whilst the Wimbledon mens final was watched by a much larger audience than the womens ......

Tbh there are more important things to worry about in the world than whether millionaire X should be getting paid more than millionairess Y and I have no idea why this guy brought it up as it doesn't affect him one way or another

 

[Anil]

Well we're talking about salary and prize money Anil. So obviously the relevant point is interest and money in the game.

Its pretty simple. You guys can bring up quality and who would beat someone etc. all you like, but at the end of the day the discussion is based on the concept of B]prize money[/B]. That prize money has to come from somewhere.

sure and the distribution of the prize money is what i am referring to as well...in any merit-based system, the men would get paid more but i am aware that there are other considerations that influence these decisions so...

 

[vcs]

i wouldn't because that would penalize them for being efficient/good at their jobs...the analogy is inaccurate at best...



sounds a lot like trying to fit "from each according to their ability, to each according to their need" into a capitalistic environment...in terms of pure quality of tennis, men's games are miles better, in terms of the amount of work they do (in majors), men have a tougher ask and spend significantly more time on court...if women were not getting paid proportionally, i would agree that it is an injustice but equal pay because of whatever unmeasurable intangibles that are used to make it seem like a level playing ground is unfair as well...



the tournament director is clearly a misogynist prick but i thought novak's argument was more along the lines of "since we work more, we should get paid more"...if that is inaccurate and he was just repeating what the other guy was saying, i don't agree with him...because my point is more about the quality and quantity of the work both of which favor the men getting paid better...

Do you think there should be equal prize money in ATP/WTA events where both have best of 3, and unequal at Slams because of the differing match lengths?

Quality of play is hard to measure objectively, men's tennis has been great in recent years at the top end yes, but are the earlier rounds getting too predictable? Again these things go in cycles, in a few years the WTA might have more fascinating story-lines and the ATP might have a bunch of mentally weak inconsistent players at the top.

 

[Jono]

Murray said over the last decade men's tennis had benefited from some high-profile rivalries, but women players were also able to draw strong crowds.
Speaking at the start of the Miami Open, Murray said women deserved the same prize money as men at all combined events.

"At a tournament like this, for example, if Serena is playing on centre court and you have a men's match with [Sergiy] Stakhovsky playing, people are coming to watch Serena," he said.

"The crowds are coming to watch the women as well. The whole thing just doesn't stack up – it changes on a day-to‑day basis depending on the matches you get."

Murray made my same argument, but bagged Stakhovsky instea of Kukushkin

http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/...na-williams-to-novak-djokovic-20160322-gnp374

 

[MW1304]

I find this whole affair disappointing. It should be a point of pride that tennis is one of the very few sports where the women's game stacks up against the men's game pretty well in terms of popularity, quality and spectacle. Right now it's being used as a point of contention for arguments about money instead. We all know there are so many more historical reasons for the gap in pay than pure x number of people watching, x number of hours played. It's also beyond uncomfortable to hear Djokovic of all people be one to make the argument.

 

[Anil]

Do you think there should be equal prize money in ATP/WTA events where both have best of 3, and unequal at Slams because of the differing match lengths?

Quality of play is hard to measure objectively, men's tennis has been great in recent years at the top end yes, but are the earlier rounds getting too predictable? Again these things go in cycles, in a few years the WTA might have more fascinating story-lines and the ATP might have a bunch of mentally weak inconsistent players at the top.

equal prize money at regular tour events is at least an argument that can be made...

 

[Cabinet96]

I think doing prize money for tournaments depending on how much popularity it gets etc is fair enough. I.e. if a male only tournament gets significantly more gate recipients, tv money, sponsorship money, etc then having a bigger prize money fund makes sense. But for tournaments where both gender play then it's basically impossible to work out who contributes more because they both combine to make the tournament more popular. You pay to see both when you go to the tournament. So equal prize money makes sense.

As far as I'm aware this is basically what happens currently.

 

[vogue]

Tour de Yorkshire becomes world’s most lucrative women’s cycling race ~The Guardian

Amidst this discussion in tennis...seems as if the world of cycling is moving things on for women in terms of prize money and coverage...

 

[Magrat Garlick]

Tour de Yorkshire becomes world’s most lucrative women’s cycling race ~The Guardian

Amidst this discussion in tennis...seems as if the world of cycling is moving things on for women in terms of prize money and coverage...

Well cycling are starting from an incredibly low bar. The women could triple their prize money and the winner would still be earning about the same as a top-50 man.

 

[vogue]

Well cycling are starting from an incredibly low bar. The women could triple their prize money and the winner would still be earning about the same as a top-50 man.

For sure..but at least it's going in the right direction...albeit slowly

 

[social]

In the wake of all this controversy, the tennis authorities have ignored the most obvious solution i.e. follow the BCCI model & appoint Gavaskar as the tour spokesman

I can just see it now

"There is no unrest in tennis dressing rooms, quite the opposite in fact. The players, both male & female, are extremely grateful for the prudent management of the tour under the wise leadership of <insert corrupt businessman here>. Now, has anyone test ridden the new model from Hero Honda. Just $4990 from you local dealer."

PR problem solved

 

[Magrat Garlick]

Barty gives it away indefinitely too, which is a bit of a shocker, first high-profile burn out since Vaidisova perhaps? Who coincidently at the age of 25 has made a come-back this way. Vimes will be pleased I know how he likes tall ball-bashing blonde Eastern Europeans.

Barty has started a low-profile comeback, playing ITF doubles and winning three $25k titles. Not much opposition, but at least it's going better than her cricket career.

 

[grecian]

Barty has started a low-profile comeback, playing ITF doubles and winning three $25k titles. Not much opposition, but at least it's going better than her cricket career.

TBF, I think after her depression she always said she was likely to go back to tennis, the cricket was just a fun way to work on her fitness and get into a competitive team environment. Really no reason she can't make squillions on the doubles scene. She does look a lot fitter than she did.

In other rather predictable news the LTA still monumentally ****.

 

[Jono]

Nadal retiring because of heat exhaustion suggests he really is done. Used to be able to handle hot conditions better than anyone.

 

[Magrat Garlick]

truly the stuff of legends

 

[Jono]

DIMITROV! Good win

 

[Magrat Garlick]

Fairly steady stuff from Azarenka (wind-fuelled serve wobble at end of first set excepted). Wins Miami without dropping a set.

I doubt she'll back it up on the clay, though.

 

[Jono]

Really hoping Nishi can put up a fight in the final.

 

[Anil]

Nope...Nole is too good...and has been especially brutal on his opponents in finals this year...