"Hosting a women’s event in one of the most misogynistic countries in the world" - Tennis fans react to possibility of Saudi Arabia hosting WTA Finals
After the decision to organize this's year WTA Finals in Saudi Arabia was taken by WTA, the board has been under serious scrutiny from fans. Many tennis fanatics have attacked and bashed the board severely due to the issues ongoing in the Arab country presently.
A fan has recently focused on a sensitive topic by posting about the moral values of Saudi Arabia. The fan talked about how the country didn't even allow women inhabitants to drive cars around their land a few years ago and now focuses on hosting one of the most crucial tournaments of the sport.
The fans went on to bash WTA for their lack of concern for the women players set to compete for the title at the WTA Finals terming the country as a 'misogynistic' one.
Apart from this, Saudi Arabia has been in the news for their notion against LGBTQ+ rights and the mistreatment of women in the country. Fans were quick enough to use this issue as an alarming one thereby tweeting against the board for their decision to shift such an important tournament to Saudi.
Some of the fan reactions on Twitter are:
What did legends John McEnroe and Chris Evert have to say about the WTA Finals being held in Saudi Arabia?
Tennis legends John McEnroe and Chris Evert have recently given their take on the Saudi Arabia infatuation. After targeting sports such as football, F1, Golf, and Cycling, the legends fear that tennis can too be very soon covered with the oil money.
A woman's legend Chris Evert also presented her views on playing in the Arab country. She talked about how she prefers not to play the WTA Finals in the country due to the human rights issues circulating around the nation and also the country's policies against women treating them poorly.
"I mean, for me, I would prefer not to go to Saudi Arabia to play the WTA Finals. Not that I’m going to go play, but for me, I would prefer the WTA not go to Saudi Arabia. Obviously they have the human rights issues and everything, just the way they treat women. I would be against it. But I don’t have a vote.”, said Evert in an interaction
McEnroe snubbed the board's decision to host the Next Gen Finals the following year and feels that this is not what the sport needs. He has also warned the tennis committee members on how bad the money attraction can be for the sport and might lead the game in the wrong direction.
John McEnroe said, "I don’t think our sport needs it. I don’t think it would benefit from it, and I don’t think we should do it, personally. This is just something that I don’t understand why we’re going in that direction."
Some players may view the WTA Finals tournament in Saudi Arabia as an opportunity to promote women's sports and engage with fans in the region. They may focus on the positive aspects of the event, such as increasing the visibility of women's tennis in new markets.
Conversely, other players might have reservations or concerns about participating in a country with a track record of human rights issues or gender inequality. These athletes may use their platform to raise awareness about these issues or call for change.