4 min readUpdated: May 6, 2026 07:55 AM IST
Aryna Sabalenka has called for tennis players to boycott Grand Slams if they are not paid a higher percentage of the revenue the top tier events on the tennis calendar make. Sabalenka’s comments come on the heels of a letter the top tennis players, both male and female, wrote recently criticising the French Open prize money on offer this year.
“I think at some point we will boycott it (Grand Slams),” Sabalenka said on the sidelines of the Italian Open. “I feel like that’s going to be the only way to fight for our rights.”
Sabalenka, who turned 28 on Tuesday, has already pocketed four Grand Slams. After her comments, other female tennis players also spoke about them being open to boycotting Grand Slams if they are not paid a higher portion of the prize money. It must be noted that the players had also demanded other things such as better representation, health care benefits and pensions.
“Without us there wouldn’t be a tournament and there wouldn’t be that entertainment. I feel like definitely we deserve to be paid a higher percentage,” Sabalenka added.
What has raised the players’ hackles is the announcement from the organisers of the French Open, the second Grand Slam of the year, that they were increasing overall prize money by about 10% for an overall pot of 61.7 million euros ($72.1 million), with the total amount up 5.3 million euros from last year. The players had pointed out that while the prize money had increased overall compared to last year, they will actually end up receiving a smaller share of tournament revenues.
The players claim their share of Roland Garros revenue has declined from 15.5% in 2024 to a projected 14.9% in 2026.
Four-time French Open champion Iga Swiatek, meanwhile, said that the most important thing is to have proper communication and discussions with the governing bodies.
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“Hopefully before Roland Garros there’s going to be an opportunity to have these types of meetings and we’ll see how they go,” Swiatek added. “But boycotting the tournament, it’s a bit extreme kind of situation.”
Other female players sided with Sabalenka. Coco Gauff, who will be defending her French Open women’s singles title, said, “If everyone were to move as one and collaborate, yeah, I can 100% see that.”
She did add that she wasn’t aware of players talking about a walkout.
“I definitely think there’s a consensus around that this needs to be addressed for all players of all levels, especially the lower-ranked players, too,” Gauff added. “I want to leave the sport better than I found it. If I can say I played my part when I retire, that’s something I can be proud of.”
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Gauff pointed at the collective bargaining agreement that the WNBA league back home has.
“From the things I’ve seen with other sports, usually to make massive progress and things like this, it takes a union,” Gauff said. “We have to become unionized in some way. … We definitely can move more as a collective.”
Rybakina, a two-time Grand Slam champion who won the Australian Open this year, said she will follow the other players.
“If the majority say we are boycotting, we are not playing, then of course I’m up for it,” Rybakina said. “It’s not only on the Grand Slams and it’s not only about raising the prize money. A lot of people are not aware that there is taxes which are big. You even make more prize money, but you giving it all to the taxes.”
(With inputs from AP)
