Denis Shapovalov weighs in on prize money reduction, says "it's not motivating to play every week"
During his press conference after beating Jeremy Chardy in the Dubai quarterfinals, Denis Shapovalov spoke at length about the reduction in tennis prize money due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Shapovalov believes that the current monetary reward offered to players at non-Slam events is not motivating enough, which is why many of the older guys have been sitting out.
Denis Shapovalov was particularly referring to the upcoming Miami Masters, which has announced a whopping 66% (approximately) reduction in the total prize pool. The winner of the 2021 edition will take home a relatively paltry sum of around $300,110, whereas the 2019 champion - Roger Federer - had taken home $1.35 million in winnings.
This relatively low prize money this year, coupled with the overall hassle of travelling across continents amid strict quarantining rules, has seen a host of top players pull out of the Miami Masters. That includes stars like Rafael Nadal, Dominic Thiem, Roger Federer, Nick Kyrgios, Gael Monfils and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, to name a few.
Against that background, Denis Shapovalov claimed that this will likely be the norm at non-Slam events as long as the prize money is lower than normal. According to the Canadian, playing in every tournament is no longer motivating enough as it does not pay well, especially when compared to the Slams.
"I definitely think there's going to be a lot of withdrawals and a lot of people not going to tournaments," Shapovalov said. "I do agree the prize money is low, and it's not motivating to play every week, and play all the big tournaments. There's not really a lot in it for us other than the Slams at this point, that are paying just as much or better."
Denis Shapovalov went on to express hope that the ATP will do something soon to correct the situation. Shapovalov also pointed out that several players are simply playing because their contracts with their sponsors 'obligate' them to do so.
"Hopefully the ATP or someone can do something to improve the prize money and bring it back to what it was," Shapovalov said. "But it is what it is right now, you know. So we have other obligations from sponsors, contracts that obligate us to play as well. So for sure, that's definitely one reason why a lot of players are still playing, because otherwise, I feel like a lot of players just don’t want to play at all."
Denis Shapovalov believes that Masters 1000 events are no longer an attractive proposition for the top players, given that they have already won such tournaments numerous times.
"I think for the bigger guys, it's not really motivating (to play 500s and Masters)," the Canadian went on. "They’ve been there, they've won Masters, they've won Slams, so they don't have a reason to go and play."
More chances to win Masters titles with the big guys pulling out: Denis Shapovalov
Since 2018, there have been only six instances where a player outside the Big 3 has won a Masters 1000 title - Alexander Zverev (Madrid 2018), Karen Khachanov (Paris 2018), Dominic Thiem (Indian Wells 2019) and Daniil Medvedev (Shanghai 2018, Cincinnati 2018 and Paris 2020).
Denis Shapovalov believes that this record might see an improvement now that the top stars are regularly opting out of the Masters events. The Canadian claimed that younger players such as himself will have a greater chance to lay their hands on silverware in the near future.
"There's way more guys pulling out and than there ever was in Masters, so definitely more chances to win," Shapovalov said. "And definitely more opportunities for sure. So it's good for young guys like me."