Ons Jabeur (l) previously expressed support for the move and Jessica Pegula shared hopes of how the sport could impact the countryGetty Images
Tunisian tennis player Ons Jabeur and American Jessica Pegula “saw potential for positive impacts” the WTA Finals could have in Saudi Arabia, according to Jeff Hartsell of the Charleston POST & COURIER. Jabeur had previously expressed support for the move. Jabeur said, “I know some people maybe here have a different opinion about Saudi. I do understand, but I wish they could be open about hearing what I have to say or what women there have to say. I think it's a great opportunity.” The deal with Saudi Arabia means a purse of $15.25M for the season-ending championship. Jabeur: "They're actually respecting us because they offered us very good prize money. Maybe not everything is about the money, but I don't see any offer being the same as in Saudi. I feel, also, it's a great opportunity for us to be there and continue for the changes that they're making for women.” Pegula said that she was “recently on a call” from women from Saudi Arabia and they were saying “how amazing it is, and how inspirational it would be for girls, and how much they see their country changing.” She added, “So looking at it that way, I'm really excited and I think that's really cool that we can, as a women's sport, change a narrative in a country that has been a certain way for a long time” (Charleston POST & COURIER, 4/4).
MONEY WILL DO IT: In London, Jamie Braidwood notes after “ploughing billions” into soccer, F1, boxing and golf, Saudi Arabia has “now made its first move into elite women’s sport.” It is a deal that will “sit uncomfortably with many,” particularly as women’s tennis retains such strong ties to a proud history of advocating equality, women’s rights and inclusivity. Braidwood writes the WTA “signed up anyway, tellingly without the widespread condemnation from current players” that followed even the slightest hint of Saudi Arabia’s tourism board sponsoring the Women’s World Cup last year. Braidwood: “Money talks, after all, and the WTA found itself in a position where it was badly needed.” The WTA Finals were available to buy “was down to its own failures,” following the fiasco of Cancun last season, where players “criticised the tournament’s organisation.” While the WTA said that there were “multiple bids” to host the Finals, Saudi Arabia “had the means and the will to offer record prize money” of $15.25M, an increase of 70% from last year. Braidwood adds it “undoubtedly suited the WTA,” after they were left in a lurch as a 10-year deal to host the tournament in Shenzhen, China collapsed, bringing an end to the “revolving circus that saw the Finals bounce unattractively from Texas to Cancun over the previous two seasons.” Braidwood: “This was guaranteed money and Saudi Arabia offers the tournament a long-standing home; even if a three-year deal has only been signed for now, the sense is tennis is there to stay and the men’s tour will soon sign up” (London INDEPENDENT, 4/5).
