Ons Jabeur has never been backwards in coming forwards when it comes to scheduling and she continues to have her say amid the recent issues at
Roland Garros with Novak Djokovic being on court until 3:09am at the
French Open.
The opposite end of the scale is Jabeur who had to play at 11am local time which she called a 'chore'. She said the desired slot is mid afternoon when most of the fans are in the stadiums. But whilst the spotlight has been thrust on how WTA stars have been treated, Jabeur has said that both need to be handled better.
10 night matches have been ATP only which has been widely shunned by fans and journalists alike. But Jabeur looks at it as the bigger picture in that it's not healthy for anyone. The Tunisian said that it is not only an issue for players but also support staff and even journalists who have to remain on site in a lot of cases until the final match is done often including a huge name. So it brings up a myriad of issues.
“I have a lot to say on that topic. As you said, 10 night matches without any women playing. I don't expect any women to play in the evening, but frankly, playing a quarterfinal at 11 a.m. is really such a chore. We deserve to be here. Playing in the afternoon is better. There are going to be more people watching us and the stadiums are crowded," said Jabeur.
"Well, the VIP is, well, you know, as usual. But I really hope that I can see the contract negotiated with Prime. I really don't understand the ins and outs, even for men. Playing that late for men after midnight is not a good thing. We saw yesterday how Novak was suffering with his knee. And this, because he couldn't really recover well? I think for all players, men, women, we deserve better than that.
"We deserve a better scheduling. We talked about this in Australia. We are still talking about this here. Even for you, the journalists, I don't think it's healthy to have these night matches. It's for everybody I'm speaking. So we want a salary increase (smiling). No, I'm kidding.
"But who knows? We have to find a way out so that everybody is happy: the players, the journalists, the full team. The ballkids are young and they're still on the courts when it's really late. I don't know if it's logical to have all that.”
