"Deep down they don’t feel that women deserve as much" - Denis Shapovalov launches strong criticism of gender gap in tennis

With the month of March being celebrated as Women's History Month, and with March 8 being celebrated as International Women's Day, Canadian tennis player Denis Shapovalov opened up about the gender gap in the sport and spoke about why it should cease to exist.

Writing for The Players Tribune, Denis Shapovalov declared that the gender gap in tennis is unfair and doesn't make sense at all. He added that for many players on the tour, prize money is not an extra amount of cash but it is about survival.

"It’s so unfair. It doesn’t make sense at all. And it matters, because the expenses are crazy in tennis: You travel all year, you stay in hotels, you pay your coaching staff. The big stars don’t have to worry about it, but many on the tour are struggling just to break even. For these players, prize money is not about getting a nice lump of extra cash. It’s about survival," he said.

Denis Shapovalov narrated an incident when his girfriend, Mirjam Björklund - a tennis player herself, opened his eyes to the wage gap that exists in the sport. After Björklund qualified to play a WTA 250 tournament, the duo got talking about prize money, which is when the Canadian realized the disparity in pay between the men’s and women’s tournaments.

"I said to Mirjam, “Oh, great! You’ll get at least $7,000 just to be in the main draw," he wrote. She just looked at me like I was completely new to tennis. I’ll never forget it. She was like, “Denis … I think it’s like a thousand dollars. I was like, “What are you talking about? How is that possible??," Shapovalov wrote.

The World No. 30 stated that he still doesn't understand the thought process of the pay disparity, wondering how women could be paid less even though the quality of their game was on par with the men's.

"I still don’t understand the thought process. Some say women don’t sell as many tickets, but when I go to matches the stadiums are full. I took a picture of the stands when Mirjam was playing Daria Saville at the WTA 250 in Washington, D.C., in August last year. It was packed. The game was crazy intense. The quality was unbelievable.

"Saville won the third set in a tie break. The men were playing a 500 tournament there at the same time. The male winners in the first round got $14,280. Saville got $4,100. It’s less than a third!," he said.

The Canadian went as far as to say that many people think of gender equality as mere political correctness and feel that women do not deserve to get paid as much as men do, an attitude he could only describe as "terrible."

"Maybe I’m being cynical, but I think some people might think of gender equality as mere political correctness. Deep down they don’t feel that women deserve as much, you know? And that’s terrible," he criticized.

Potential stars will quit the sport: Denis Shapovalov

Denis Shapovalov at the 2023 Australian Open. (PC: Getty Images)

Denis Shapovalov further worried that the sport runs the risk of losing potential stars if female players are not being treated fairly. He opined that complete equality should be brought into the game for budding female stars to grow in the sport.

"As for prize money, anything else but complete equality is not just unfair — it also blocks participation. If female players are not being treated fairly, some of those at the lower levels may find they can’t afford to continue. Potential stars will just quit," Denis Shapovalov said.

Shapovalov added that the repercussions of potential stars quitting the sport will be huge, explaining that the popularity of the women's game will diminish and thereby result in setting a bad example for future generations.

"And then women’s tennis really will become less “popular.” It will be shown less on TV. That would have a domino effect. And the saddest part is that it goes all the way to the kids. I was inspired by Roger, but if women’s tennis gets less exposure, the little girl in front of the TV may not think it could be a reality for her. She’ll never see her idol and go, Look at her. I want to do that," Denis Shapovalov added.

Finally, the Canadian declared that equal prize money should be the name of the game and the gender gap should cease to exist completely in the sport.

"So let’s give everyone the same chance. Let’s pay out the same prize money. Let’s stop talking about reducing the gender gap. If we want tennis to be fair, it should not exist at all," he concluded.