Patrick Mouratoglou calls for big change in women’s tennis to ‘end equal pay debate’
Tennis has long led the way in equal pay for the men’s and women’s game, but there are some who still complain about the issue and focus their attention on the fact that men play best-of-five-set matches and women play their matches over three sets.
Grand Slam events have paid equal prize money to their women’s and men’s champions since 2007, when the French Open and Wimbledon followed the lead of the Australian Open and US Open.
Tennis icon Billie Jean King championed the equal prize money debate, but the difference in ‘workload’ for the women’s and men’s draw has always created a debate around the topic.
Now coach Patrick Mouratoglou, who has worked with Serena Williams, Noami Oasak and Holger Rune, has entered the debate by claiming the best way to solve the discussion is to extend the women’s matches to five set contests.
That would inevitably add to the injury issues for female players, but Mouratoglou insisted that was the best option to take the women’s game to the next level.
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“For a long time, the argument against Equal Prize Money in Grand Slams – which is a reality – has centered on the workload,” wrote Mouratoglou on LinkedIn.
“We hear it constantly: “The men play five sets; the women only play three.” So 100%, I believe women should play best-of-five in Slams, and here is why.
“No 1, ending the Pay Debate in Grand Slams: Moving to five sets would effectively close the discussion regarding athletes “working more” for their prize money.
“No 2, solving the night session recurring crisis at Roland-Garros. Tournament organizers often avoid scheduling women’s matches at night because a 40-minute “6-1, 6-1” result leaves fans feeling short-changed. Five sets would guarantee the “show” people pay for.
“No 3, proving athletic excellence: I know these women can do it. It would showcase their endurance and the true physical reality of modern competition.
“Of course, this would bring organizational challenges that need to be solved – from court scheduling to player recovery process – but these are logistics. The core idea must be considered if we want to elevate the quality of the spectacle.
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“I was asked if women should play 5 from the semifinals. Why not the quarters, or even earlier.
“Tennis is a show, and five-set battles are among the most legendary stories are written. Why deprive half the field of that opportunity? Between 1984 and 1998, the final of the WTA finals was played in five sets, and it worked well.”
Women players would be reluctant to extend their matches to five sets over a long two-week Grand Slam, but there could be an option to play the latter stages of Grand Slams over five sets in the women’s event, even if it was just the final.
The winners of the women’s and men’s singles’ titles at this year’s Australian Open will receive AUS $4.15M, which is a 19 per cent increase on last year.
The overall prize money for the tournament is a record-breaking $111.5 million prize pool, representing a 16 per cent increase on last year and the largest in the tournament’s history.
