Sumit Nagal
opens up about financial struggles on the
ATP Tour despite being India's No. 1
The
26-year-old tennis player, currently ranked World No. 159, with his best
historical ranking at World No. 122 in August 2020, has never managed to break
into the top 100. Sumit Nagal recently highlighted the economic challenges that
tennis players face when they are not in the higher ranks of the rankings.
According
to the Indian tennis player, he can only make a living based on his performance
in tournaments and has no savings. He also mentioned that he was affected by
the COVID crisis and had a couple of years with poor performance:
"It
was in mid-summer last year when I started feeling better. I lost a few matches
I should have won, I lost matches from match points or when serving for a match
and when I was a set and a breakup. I got COVID twice last year, so I had a
long, long two years," Nagal said.
"I
don't have anything in savings. I am just breaking even depending on how I do
in the tournaments. I did not earn anything in the last two years so I am happy
that I am breaking even. At least I am not in minus where I have to leave the
academy and travel on my own."
“I feel
like I am lacking support despite being India’s number one player for past few
years. I am the only player to qualify for Grand Slams, only player to win a
tennis match at the Olympics in last few years... We lack funding, we lack the
system. If there is a system, there will be funding," he said.
On his
Twitter page,
Vasek Pospisil, Canadian tennis player and co-founder of the PTPA
alongside Novak Djokovic, criticized the sport of tennis for not providing a
comfortable living for all athletes, despite being one of the sports that
generates the most money:
"Tennis.
The multi-billion dollar industry where most player’s can’t make a living. 3rd
most watched sport, 2nd most bet on," Vasek Pospisil wrote.
