The prize money disparity in tennis has been an often discussed topic in tennis for a very long time, and it once again came into the spotlight after the 2024 Cincinnati Open.
At the moment, there are plenty of tournaments that offer equal prize money to both men and women. Most notably, these are Grand Slam tournaments, but also some joint ATP and WTA 1000 events.
However, there are even more tournaments that don't offer the same prize money to men and women, and one of them is the Cincinnati Open, which has recently concluded.
On the men's side, Jannik Sinner won the title after playing four matches, as his third-round opponent Jordan Thompson withdrew prior to their match, spending more than nine hours on the tennis courts.
For his efforts, the Italian player, who recently revealed that he tested positive for a banned substance twice, earned $1,049,460 in prize money and 1000 ATP ranking points.
On the women's side, Aryna Sabalenka was the best player in Cincinnati, by far. She steamrolled past all of her five opponents, not losing a single set in the process, spending more than seven hours on the courts.
However, for her efforts, the Belarusian player received the same 1000 WTA ranking points, but when it came to prize money, she was awarded 'only' $523,485, less than a half of what was the men's winner given.
This once again opened the discussion among many tennis fans about whether this distribution is fair or not. However, we know that the WTA committed to matching the ATP's prize money at all combined WTA 1000 and 500 tournaments by 2027.
Still, some tennis fans were enraged by the stark difference in prize money earned for relatively same effort by the two champions. This will, however, change at the upcoming US Open, where men and women will be paid the same.
Although the Belarusian player earned much less for her triumph than her colleague from the ATP Tour, judging by her words after the final match, it was clear that money won for tournaments is often the last thing that tennis players think about.
"I would say that I'm really playing great tennis. Probably not like the best tennis I can play, but I'm definitely getting there. And with every match I play, I feel better, better and better and hopefully at the US Open, I can keep building the level, and I can, I can reach maybe even higher level than I used to play."
At the end of the day, tennis players are competitive beasts, who love to play and compete, and that what drives them forward, and not the paycheque that they earn.
"I think I was really emotional in Washington and Toronto coming back after after injury. I was overreacting, and I just stepped back and realized that I played my great tennis when I was calm and confident, that no matter what's what's going on the court, I'll be able to keep fighting and keep trying my best no matter what the score, what the situation is."
"And I just realized that I have to be that way. There is no, no other way for me if I want to, if I want to do well here and New York."
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