Nick Kyrgios objects to equal prize money at Grand Slams: "I played for 4 hours at the Australian Open, Elina Svitolina played for like 40 minutes"
Nick Kyrgios recently voiced his objections to the ATP and WTA players receiving equal prize money at Grand Slam tournaments.
The US Open set the precedent for equal prize money back in 1973, and they commemorated 50 years of the historic milestone at this year's edition of the New York Major. The other Major tournaments subsequently followed suit; with Wimbledon joining the initiative in 2007, all four Grand Slam tournaments had parity in prize money.
But Kyrgios is seemingly not happy with the Grand Slam tournaments offering equal prize money. He highlighted the apparent discrepancy in match durations to reinforce his point; women play best-of-three-sets matches at Slams while the men play best-of-five.
The Australian argued that despite spending four hours on court during his campaign at the Australian Open, compared to Elina Svitolina's "40 minutes," both received identical pay.
"I played for four hours at the A.O. (Australian Open), then (Elina) Svitolina played for like 40 minutes and we both got paid the same," Nick Kyrgios told The Athletic.
It is worth mentioning that during the 2022 Australian Open, the most recent edition where both Kyrgios and Svitolina competed, the Ukrainian spent considerably more than 40 minutes on the court.
At the 2022 edition of the Melbourne Slam, Svitolina triumphed over Fiona Ferro in her tournament opener in one hour and 32 minutes. She then emerged victorious against Harmony Tan in two hours and seven minutes. She was defeated by Victoria Azarenka in the third round, losing in an hour and seven minutes. Thus, in total, the Ukrainian spent approximately four hours and 46 minutes on the court.
Nick Kyrgios, meanwhile, spent just under five hours on the court at the 2022 Australian Open. He defeated Liam Broady in one hour and 54 minutes in the first round before falling to Daniil Medvedev in a three-hour-long encounter.
Nick Kyrgios on potential ATP and WTA merger: "If the WNBA said, 'Let’s merge,' the NBA would ridicule them"
In the same interview, Nick Kyrgios also raised concerns about a potential merger between the ATP and WTA tours. The 28-year-old emphasized that, in such a scenario, he would expect complete integration, including the women's players competing in the men's draw.
The 2022 Wimbledon finalist drew a comparison to basketball, stating that if the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) ever brought up a potential merger with the National Basketball Association (NBA), the suggestion would be met with ridicule.
"If we’re merging, you merge the draws, you merge everything," he said. "But why is tennis the only sport that deals with this stuff? If the WNBA said, ‘Let’s merge’, the NBA would ridicule them."