Muchova making moves 👀 The Czech saves THREE match points with Gauff serving for the title. Play on! #CincyTennis
Karolina Muchova has addressed the gender pay gap in tennis by pointing out that, while she is not in a position to influence things, women's matches have been receiving increased interest from fans.
All four Grand Slams have offered equal prize money since 2007, when Wimbledon joined the other three in ensuring men and women players received the same amount. However, the ATP and WTA Tour still show large disparities in earnings.
This was on clear display once again at the recent Cincinnati Open, where the men's champion Novak Djokovic earned over $1 million in prize money, while the women's victor Coco Gauff earned less than half of this at $454,500, which is also $102,130 less than the $556,630 Carlos Alcaraz received for finishing as runner-up in the men's event.
In a recent interview with Vogue, Muchova, who was Gauff's opponent in the Western & Southern Open final, addressed the disparity.
Although she admitted that she couldn't directly change anything herself, she underlined that fans are now filling up stadiums to watch women's matches, including her final against Iga Swiatek at the French Open earlier this year. The Czech player finished as runner-up to the World No. 1, who won 6-2, 5-7, 6-4.
"It is something that I cannot influence from my position. I understand that the organizers have signed contracts and new television rights. For a long time, men's tennis was considered more attractive, but lately it seems to me that women's tennis has become more fun, more unpredictable. The stadiums are starting to fill up, we could see it in the Roland Garros final, that was an incredible experience," she said.
The 27-year-old broke into the top 10 for the first time in her career thanks to her deep run in Cincinnati. In the interview, Muchova also opened up on what she has changed this season that has helped her to reach new heights in her career.
"I reduced my training somehow, it was being too much, my body no longer responded in the same way. I felt that I wanted to go out on my own, find a new momentum, so since the beginning of the season I have only surrounded myself with people with whom I am happy, who I trust.
"There is a synergy between us and that is also important for mental well-being," she said.
Muchova making moves 👀 The Czech saves THREE match points with Gauff serving for the title. Play on! #CincyTennis