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The controversy surrounding the reported 11-year imprisonment of a female activist in Saudi Arabia has shaken up the tennis world. This is due to Saudi Arabia having bagged the deal to host the prestigious, year-end WTA Finals from 2024 to 2026.
On Wednesday, May 1, reports emerged that Manahel-al-Otaibi, a Saudi Arabian women's rights activist, had been on the receiving end of an 11-year prison sentence. Her arrest earlier in January this year was reportedly under Saudi Arabia's anti-terror laws.
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In the first week of April, an official statement released by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) confirmed that the next three editions of the WTA Finals would indeed be hosted in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. The statement marked the end of raging rumors that had swirled for months and stirred controversy in the world of women's tennis.
After the news of al-Otaibi's prison sentence broke, fans ridiculed the WTA Finals' move to Saudi Arabia. One set of fans took aim directly at the WTA.
"The WTA is a f**king disgrace and should be ashamed of themselves," one fan wrote.
"As long as they are "protected," they don't care about anything else," another fan commented.
"WTA signed up for this ride for three years, this is just the beginning.Pro tennis more broadly as well, but WTA gets held to a higher standard, fairly or not. (Unlike the ATP, a business and not a cause, which has never once sought out anything resembling moral high ground.)," a prominent tennis journalist chimed in.
"Shocking," the handle of a well-known tennis-themed podcast wrote.
Another set of fans took aim at WTA World No. 9 Ons Jabeur. The Tunisian has backed the move, even though former tennis greats Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova have openly opposed it.
"Ons Jabeur You were saying?" asked one fan.
"Ons Jabeur looks at that and says, "progress." commented another fan.
"Ons Jabeur looks at that and says “Come and see for yourselves “. No thank you. Sickening," wrote another fan.
Ons Jabeur expressed her optimism for the WTA Finals in Saudi Arabia earlier this year
In February this year, Jabeur backed Princess Reema bint Bantar-al-Saud's view on Saudi Arabia hosting the WTA Finals, which she shared as a response to Evert and Navratilova's criticism. Princess Reema, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the US, told the BBC:
"Sports should not be used as a weapon to advance personal bias or agendas or punish a society that is eager to embrace tennis and help celebrate and grow the sport."
Jabeur hailed Princess Reema's rebuttal as "classy" and "elegant" during an interview with AFP in Abu Dhabi. She was optimistic about playing at the WTA Finals in Riyadh.
"Princess Reema's answer was unbelievable. I think classy, elegant, and every player was impressed with the way she addressed Martina's and Chris' letter. We're obviously looking forward to go there, I'm personally looking forward to go there," Jabeur said.
The 2024 WTA Finals are slated to start on November 2 and end on November 9.
