'Hard to argue with facts and math' - Opelka Slams Doubles Again

Tuesday, 28 March 2023 at 03:00

Updated at Tuesday, 28 March 2023 at 00:29

byBalasz Virag

Reilly Opelka is not a fan of doubles tennis because he feels like that part of the sport hurts tennis in general.

Opelka has shared his stance on doubles tennis a few times before and some fans were outraged. A very vital part of the sport from the start doubles tennis is capable of producing super-exciting matches even though interest generally is fairly low. It's low compared to singles tennis but it can pack arenas in certain circumstances. The tall American spoke about doubles tennis once again on The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast, when he said:

I'm just speaking what I feel is the truth. It's really hard to argue with facts and math. If they can present a point to me at the ATP 250 and 500 level that shows that they bring in the money that costs to have them there, let alone prize money, then perfect. But the numbers point to me.

Read also

Ruud Crashes Out Of Miami Open As Struggles With Form Continue

Opelka is not wrong in his reasoning as doubles tennis generally doesn't generate much revenue in smaller events if any at all. It would be hard to imagine that they generate as much revenue as they are paid out in prize money and that's what Opelka calls the harsh truth.

It's just the truth, it's a harsh reality. I'm not doing it to take food off someone's plate by any means. If we look at the economics of the sport, which is a big concern, you can't have it all. People are like, 'Oh, we need to help guys outside the Top-150, 100.' I agree. But how do you do that? There's one way to look at it right there.

He also talked about his own return to the court explaining that he hopes to be with a racquet in his hands in the next two months. When that translated to tennis on competitively remains to be seen.

I'm really hoping to get the racquet in my hands in two months or so. Then, its hard to say. I'm not putting a timeline, I want to make sure I'm ready and fit, that's more important to me.