Iga Swiatek has been winning a lot of events in the past two years, which means she's been earning a lot of money, and she just passed Martina Navratilova and Steffi Graf in prize money earnings.
Now you might think to yourself, how is that possible? Both Graf and Navratilova have had far better tennis careers than Swiatek, and that's true; however, what they didn't have is the amount of prize money being won in modern times.
The sport is far bigger now than it was back when they played, so everything is bigger. Tickets cost more, TV deals are more expensive, and there is generally more interest in the sport. That all allows for bigger profits that trickle down to the players.
It's not on the level of the ATP clearly but by comparison, it is still far better than it was before. With the recent triumph at the WTA Finals, Swiatek is now up to $24,592,763 in prize money, which is a sizeable amount.
That amount is greater than the career prize money of Martina Navratilova, which sits at 21,626,089. Steffi Graf for comparison earned 21,895,277 which is pretty good as well but still not as much as before.
Now, if we would convert those amounts to what they would be worth today, then obviously, both of these players would have more than Swiatek. However, things changed, which is why Serena Williams is the highest earner of all time with $90+ millions.
Had she played 20 years earlier, that amount would have been far less, the same way somebody who plays right now is earning more than Williams did over a decade ago.
The way Swiatek has been playing recently, she'll certainly eclipse $30 million and possibly also $40 million. She might even eclipse $50 million, which would put her as the second-highest earner of all time behind Serena Williams.
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