“It is Super Weak From Them” – Karolina Pliskova Rips Into ATP Men

World Number three Karolina Pliskova made an ideal start to the season by clinching the title in Brisbane. Enroute the title, she defeated Naomi Osaka in the semi-finals after bouncing back from a match-point deficit. Later, she lost in the third round of Australian Open 2020.

Amid the professional tour’s suspension, she’ll be restarting her tennis at LiveScore Cup in Prague next week. But before getting on-board she criticized the ATP men.

The top-ranked Czech player Pliskova doesn’t really crave equal prize money on ATP and WTA Tours, but she’s displeased about male professionals who are not in support of it.

 “I don’t think so and I am not the one who wants it. But I don’t like the men who are complaining that we would get the same money. I think it is super weak from them that they complain we have the same money as them,” Pliskova PA news agency.

“I don’t see the reason why we should compare each other” – Karolina Pliskova 

Presently, men and women are paid equally at Grand Slams, but in the other events, the pay disparity still exists. The tickets for the women’s events don’t sell as much as men’s games. Moreover, their matches attract a much lower television viewership compared to their male counterparts. Eventually, that reduces the amounts on their paychecks. 

“The only time it is true is at grand slams. I understand they play longer, but they are men. They are stronger than us. I don’t see the reason why we should compare each other. I don’t need to have the same prize money as men,” she added.

“But to have the same chance to play on the center court or to have the same chance to be on TV. That should be possible with these changes.”

Moreover, Karolina Pliskova supports Roger Federer’s notion of merging both the tours. She believes that it could help the women’s tour and it would take a couple of years for the idea to be implemented.

Read More – Six Tennis Players Aced The Forbes List of World’s Highest-Paid Athletes

Even though the female tennis players are not paid as much as the men, this year Naomi Osaka went on to become the highest-paid female athlete in the history of the sport with total earnings of US $37.4 million.