French star hits out at Wimbledon in tickets row
French star Alize Cornet believes Wimbledon don’t give enough credit to the players who have to play on their outside courts.
Cornet pointed out the vast disparity between complimentary tickets alloted to players on Centre Court against those out on the periphery.
She says that she received just two tickets for her opening round match and then 40 when she alighted Centre Court in a second round loss to Elena Rybakina.
“For me the biggest issue on this tournament was, yeah, the difference between today I played on Centre Court, and I had basically 40 tickets to give away,” Cornet said as per the Mirror.
“Nobody could come. I couldn’t even invite like one of my best friends who was there. Two tickets on the outside court, it’s too little. Then you have a huge gap and you get 40 when you play on Centre Court.
“You need to give a little more credit to players that play on the outside courts. This tournament exists because of all the players, not only the ones that play on the big courts.”
Cornet believes that Wimbledon could take some pointers from the US Open when it comes to tickets.
“It’s better [in the US],” Cornet went on.
“No, the biggest gap is here in Wimbledon. In the other tournaments, you get like four, six, you know, at least a little bit to invite your friends.
“So every year I’m thinking the same, I’m like, yeah, if you want to – everybody is asking me for tickets. If the schedule puts me on Court 10, I cannot give you anything. It’s a shame, but it’s the rule.”
Cornet was injured on Centre Court and burst into tears during her second-round loss against Rybakina. Cornet’s obvious anguish spurred defending champion Rybakina to sprint over the net to lend her aid, with medical assistance arriving shortly after.
Despite Rybakina quickly snatching the opening set, Cornet’s reputation as a giant-killer made their matchup fascinating prospect and the second set did not disappoint.
In the second frame, which was more intensely contested, Cornet and Rybakina engaged in a seemingly never-ending games at 5-5 going to deuce a dozen times.
The injury came when Cornet pushed off with her left foot, but she was unable to maintain her footing on the grass as the game went on and the match neared its key minutes.
The 33-year-old twisted awkwardly on her right knee, fell to the ground face-down, and wept.
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