Patrick Mouratoglou Backs Australian Open Director’s Plan of Making Women Play Five Setters as It’ll ‘Close’ Equal Pay Debate
Patrick Mouratoglou has no doubt about WTA players' ability to play five-setters in Grand Slam tournaments.
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Patrick Mouratoglou (Image via X/Tiempo De Tenis)
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Australian Open director Craig Tiley is very ambitious and always thinks of making the tournament better for the fans. But for players?
The tournament was criticized by Coco Gauff, Iga Swiatek, and even Novak Djokovic after the American ace’s racket-smashing incident. Gauff, following her defeat to Elina Svitolina in the quarterfinals, obliterated her racket on her way to the locker room only to find that the clip of it had become viral, thanks to the behind-the-scenes cameras.
The men’s semifinal and the women’s final impressed Tiley. First, eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz secured a thrilling five-set win over Alexander Zverev. The match lasted five hours and 27 minutes and is now the longest semifinal in the tournament’s history.
When the tennis world thought they had seen it all, Djokovic snapped his five-match losing streak against two-time defending champion Jannik Sinner on the same day to reach a Grand Slam final for the first time since the 2024 Wimbledon.
In the women’s final, Elena Rybakina overcame a 3-0 deficit in the third set, winning five consecutive games, before ending the match in her favor. Tiley wants the WTA aces to play best-of-five sets from the quarterfinals onward.
When Danielle Collins heard it, she almost had a cardiac arrest. But Serena Williams‘ former coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, who thinks women are capable of playing five-setters, has backed Tiley’s proposal.
Of course they can. And that would close the discussion, I mean, a piece of the discussion about equal prize money. Guys say we work way more, we play five sets, they play only three. That would close the problem of the night sessions at Roland Garros: ‘We cannot put a woman on the night session because it can be 6-1, 6-1 in 40 minutes, and people pay for a ticket for one match.
Patrick Mouratoglou said on Instagram
Later in the final, Alcaraz defeated Djokovic to become the youngest man in the Open Era to win seven Grand Slam titles. He is also the youngest man in the Open Era to achieve the Career Grand Slam.
I mean, we’ll be in trouble. Okay, they play five sets? That is different.’ So I 100 percent think it should be five sets, and women would show that they can do it, and I know they can.
Patrick Mouratoglou added
Rybakina has improved her head-to-head record over Sabalenka to 7-8. It was also the Kazakh ace’s second Grand Slam title, following her 2022 Wimbledon triumph.
Patrick Mouratoglou gives his verdict on the Carlos Alcaraz versus Alexander Zverev match
Carlos Alcaraz suffered cramps during the Australian Open semifinal against Alexander Zverev. He was leading 2-0, but Zverev won the next two.
Because of cramps, Alcaraz was unable to move properly, and he focused mostly on the winners. Zverev faced criticism after the defeat for failing to clinch the win despite Alcaraz’s physical difficulties. But Patrick Mouratoglou came to Sascha’s defense.
And then in the fifth set, Alcaraz was completely physically back. So if you guys don’t see all that, and just think that Zverev is s**t because he couldn’t beat Alcaraz, who had cramps, I think it’s a short view, and I think you have to open your mind and try to understand tennis a little bit better.
Patrick Mouratoglou said on Instagram
The win helped Alcaraz improve his head-to-head record over the German to 7-6. Zverev will bid for his career’s first Grand Slam title at the French Open next. He finished the 2024 French Open as the runner-up, losing to Alcaraz.
Also read: Novak Djokovic’s Ex-Coach Sends Warning to Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner After Australian Open
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