“Subject of equality doesn’t even get a platform,” Maria Sharapova highlights the gender pay gap in the sport

Maria Sharapova gave everyone who celebrated 50 years of equal pay at the US Open a reality check.

“Subject of equality doesn’t even get a platform,” Maria Sharapova highlights the gender pay gap in the sport

Maria Sharapova (Image via Tennis Canada)

While US Open recently celebrated 50 years of equal pay in the history of the tournament, former Russian tennis ace Maria Sharapova has claimed that there is still a huge gender pay gap in the sport. Sharapova has claimed that only 15-20 percent of the tour has implemented equal play in tennis while the rest have still a long way to catch up. 

Sharapova went on a rant as she slammed the WTA for not having media rights. The five-time Grand Slam winner has claimed that many people don’t even know about the majority of WTA tournaments. 

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“Yes, 15-20 percent of the tour is equal. But where’s the rest of the 80 percent? It’s not even close to being equal. Unfortunately, those events don’t have the biggest media rights, they don’t have the visibility. So that subject of equality doesn’t even get a platform because not too many people know internationally that these tournaments exist,” said Sharapova at the Unmatched Gender Equity Sports Conference (via Tennis Canada). 

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Notably, Maria Sharapova held the title of the world’s highest-paid female athlete for 11 years in a row. She ended her career with $39 million in prize money which was third on the WTA Tour all-time list. But Sharapova earned a chunk of her net worth money off the court.

Also Read: Aryna Sabalenka urges US Open organizers for a match on Arthur Ashe after being disbarred from the stadium so far at the US Open 2023 

Maria Sharapova calls for more participation in gender pay gap movement

Maria Sharapova Gender Pay Gap
Maria Sharapova at UNMATCHED: Gender Equity in Sports Conference (Image via Tennis Canada)

Talking further about how a major breakthrough in regards to reducing the gender pay gap can be achieved in sports, Maria Sharapova called for more participation in the movement. The former WTA No.1 said that men’s players as well as the audience need to actively participate in such talks. 

“But as we all know, actions are more powerful than words, so [the male players] need to lean in,” Sharapova said with a smile after seeing a video that showed some top ATP Tour players declaring their support for equal pay. 

Sharapova then asked the fans to not discriminate between the men’s and women’s matches. The Russian said that if a women’s match is being played before a man’s game, spectators must be there from the very start and watch both games rather than coming in just for the men’s game. “Don’t show up halfway through their match in order to watch the men. Show up for the women,” said Sharapova to the fans.

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