Wimbledon surprised and disappointed as players plan protest

LONDON: Wimbledon organisers say they are ‘surprised and disappointed’ that leading players are planning to continue their prize money protest at this year’s grasscourt major.

This month the ​All England Club announced a record year-on-year 20% rise in the total ‌prize money to £64.2 million, less than the £70 million the players were calling for.

Players are demanding a larger slice of the revenue from the Grand Slams in line with what they receive at ​ATP and WTA events. Some protested at the French Open by limiting their ​pre-tournament media activity to 15 minutes.

“Wimbledon puts the players at the ⁠heart of all our decisions and we invest significantly in them every year,” the ​All England Club said in a statement on Wednesday.

“This is alongside investing hundreds of ​millions of pounds in upgrades to our player facilities as part of a three-year transformation to create a world class player performance environment.”

Wimbledon’s record prize money pool equates to around 15% of the ​tournament’s revenue but the group of leading players represented by former WTA chief ​executive Larry Scott wanted a minimum of 16%.

Announcing the prize money this month, Wimbledon chair Debbie Jevans ‌said ⁠she had discussed prize money with Scott at the French Open. She said unlike regular tournaments, Wimbledon distributes 90% of its surplus back into British tennis.

“Using revenue to determine prize money makes no sense and we have said that to Larry Scott,” ​she said this month. “Revenue ​does not take ⁠into account the investment that we give. We are not-for-profit, and very different to a Masters 1000.”

In Paris, women’s world number one ​Aryna Sabalenka cut short her pre-tournament press conference, while other ​players like ⁠Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek limited their time.

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Players have even threatened a future boycott.

Saturday is the traditional pre-tournament media day at Wimbledon and players are set to limit their time ⁠to ​15 minutes and, according to reports, are planning to ​restrict post-match appearances to 15 minutes throughout the first week.

The 15 minutes duration symbolises the 15% share ​of Wimbledon’s takings set aside for prize money.