Aryna Sabalenka and Jannik Sinner spent a lot of time on the courts at the 2024 Australian Open, but it was definitely worth it, considering their earnings.
The Belarusian became the 2024 Australian Open champion by beating Qinwen Zheng in straight sets. The total prize money she got by doing that is A$3,150,000, which is around $2,071,125 USD.
She spent 8 hours and 11 minutes on the court, which means that she earned around A$6,415 per minute spent on the tennis court. That was, of course, possible thanks to her incredible display of power and dominance, as she swept past all of her opponents without any major difficulties.
On the other hand, things didn't go so easily for men's champion Sinner, who had to play a five-set final, but also, due to a best-of-five format, the Italian had to spend much more time on the tennis court.
The 22-year-old spent 18 hours and 30 minutes on the court, earning the same amount as Sabalenka. That means that he earned A$2,863 per minute, which is nearly half of what the Belarusian managed to earn, thanks to her perfect display at the tournament.
However, one that had to work the hardest for his money was probably Daniil Medvedev, who spent more than 24 hours on the court making his per-minute earnings A$1,183, which is a sizeable amount of money, but he would certainly be happy to double it with the winner's trophy.
Comparing how much these players earn per minute is certainly interesting, given that everyone has to spend different time on the tennis court to earn their money, and the final match demonstrated that too.
The winner of the final won A$1,425,000, and while Sabalenka won her match in an hour and 17 minutes, Sinner needed three hours and 46 minutes, making his per-minute earnings nearly three times smaller.
At the end of the day, both of them probably won't look at their bank accounts, but their trophies when remembering the 2024 Australian Open.