Wimbledon is exploring the possibility of legal action against the men’s and women’s tennis tours as the row over the removal of world ranking points from the event intensified on Tuesday.
Sources have told The Times that discussions have already taken place with lawyers surrounding a potential breach in the long-standing agreement with the governing bodies — the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) — that allows the All England Club to offer points for match wins at the championships.
It is understood that the other grand-slam tournaments — the Australian Open, French Open and US Open — are considering offering their support as part of a joint action.
This would be an escalation of a dispute that has overshadowed the first few days of the French Open. Since the ATP and WTA announced on Friday that they were stripping Wimbledon of ranking points in retaliation for the ban on Russian and Belarusian competitors at this year’s championships, a large number of players have voiced their anger at tour chiefs over a lack of consultation.
Talks are set to take place this week when Ian Hewitt, the All England Club chairman, and Sally Bolton, the chief executive, arrive at Roland Garros for a prearranged visit. Some players are harbouring hopes of a compromise that may allow for 50 per cent of ranking points to be retained from Wimbledon 2021 for another 12 months. As it stands, players will lose 100 per cent of the total they earned last year because it is not possible to defend them this year.
Karolina Pliskova, last year’s runner-up, is one of those who will be most affected. The former world No 1 from the Czech Republic will lose 1,300 points and could drop down ten places from her position of No 8.
“It’s completely the wrong decision — not even the one from Wimbledon, more the one from the WTA,” Pliskova said. “It’s super tough, unfair and bad.”
Benoît Paire was particularly critical of the action taken by the tours. The outspoken world No 78 from France questioned who the ATP is actually benefiting by stripping Wimbledon of points, referring to the possibility of the Russian Daniil Medvedev becoming world No 1 after Wimbledon as “absurd”. This is because Novak Djokovic cannot defend the 2,000 points he earned last year for winning the title.
“It’s a pity because players do not understand this decision,” Paire said. “99 per cent of players want to have points and to play the tournament as it was before, so I want to know if the ATP wants to defend [the] players or Russia.
“I will go there to get my prize money, as I would for an exhibition tournament. But the question is, ‘Why didn’t they talk with players?’ If it’s a war between the ATP and Wimbledon, it’s not nice for us, because we want to play normally. I’m sorry for Russia and Russians, but they are the ones causing all the trouble. And all the ATP players are actually paying the price.”
While Naomi Osaka indicated on Monday that she was considering skipping Wimbledon because of the lack of points on offer, most players asked said that they were still intending to compete. Emma Raducanu will lose 240 points after her run to the fourth round last year but confirmed that she has no intention of withdrawing.
“I know that it was a really tough decision,” the US Open champion said. “But for me personally I will play. I have got a lot of points coming off from Wimbledon, but for me it doesn’t really matter whatever the situation is, I am here to play and I will play whatever the situation is. If that means I cannot defend my points then so be it. I just enjoy competing.”
Martina Navratilova, who won nine Wimbledon singles titles, questioned Osaka’s stance. “I just don’t understand the mentality,” she told Piers Morgan Uncensored on TalkTV. “I would like to sit down with her and just tell her about the history of Wimbledon.”
Despite suggestions from some quarters of a vast reduction in prize money, the All England Club board is yet to decide on the size of the pot. A meeting will be held early next month to confirm the breakdown of money on offer to competitors, and insiders believe it unlikely that the removal of ranking points will have much impact. First-round losers can expect a cheque in the region of £50,000 just for turning up.
How do the ATP and WTA world rankings work?
Players earn points for every match they win on the tour. The exact number depends on the category of tournament. Wimbledon as a grand slam, for example, would normally offer 45 points for a first-round victory and 2,000 points for winning the title. A player’s overall total is based on performances over the past 52 weeks.
Why are the rankings so important?
It is effectively an objective merit-based method of showing how good a player is. There is the obvious prestige attached to the world No 1 ranking — only 27 male singles competitors have reached this position since the ATP rankings began in 1973. Seedings and entries for tournaments are based on rankings, with the top 100 generally securing a main draw spot at grand slams. The top eight qualify for the season-ending championships, while there can also be financial rewards for players who reach a certain ranking and trigger performance-related bonuses in their sponsorship contracts.
What does the removal of points mean for players at Wimbledon this year?
It is bad news for those who performed well last year. Because the rankings cover the past 52 weeks, players in normal circumstances would essentially be defending the points they earned at Wimbledon 2021. But the removal of points from this year’s championships means that it is not possible to earn these points back again. For example, Novak Djokovic might successfully defend his title again this year but will still see 2,000 points from last year drop off his total on July 11, the day after the tournament ends.
What does this mean for the state of the world rankings?
The irony is that Daniil Medvedev, a Russian who is banned from playing at Wimbledon because of his country’s invasion of Ukraine, is likely to become the world No 1 as a result. He will only lose 180 points on July 11 after reaching the quarter-finals at the All England Club in 2021. Lower-ranked players who earned a lot of points last year will suffer — Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics believes he will drop from No 57 to somewhere around the No 130 mark. The biggest winners will be the players who lost in the first round last year as their points total will remain the same, meaning that they are likely to actually move up in the rankings as others move down.
Why is tennis in this mess?
The politics in tennis is frustratingly fractured. Instead of one organisation being in full control of the sport, there are seven separate governing bodies: the ATP, the WTA, the ITF and the four grand slams, including Wimbledon, the Australian Open, French Open and US Open. The rankings are owned by the ATP and WTA, and an agreement is in place with the grand slams for points to be offered to players as they are in regular tour events. Sadly there was a complete breakdown in diplomacy following Wimbledon’s decision to refuse entries from Russia and Belarus, and the ATP and WTA decided to retaliate by claiming that the ban compromised the fairness of the rankings. At a time of war, it is frankly rather unsavoury.
Players’ and pundits’ view
Naomi Osaka
I’m not sure why, but if I play Wimbledon without points, it’s more like an exhibition. I know this isn’t true, right? But my brain just like feels that way. I’m the type of player that gets motivated by seeing my ranking go up. So I think the intention was really good, but the execution is kind of all over the place.
Martina Navratilova
I always played for the trophies — not the points and not the money. It was Wimbledon, and everything else came in second. I don’t understand that view, that players wouldn’t play because there are no points. You are playing for ranking? I just wanted to hold that trophy, that wonderful rose dish.
Novak Djokovic
I’m glad that players got together with the ATP, the governing body of the men’s tennis, and showed to the grand slam that, you know, when there is a mistake happening — and there was from the Wimbledon side — then we have to show that there is going to be some consequences.
Iga Swiatek
I think that when I’m going to step out on court it’s going to be normal for me, because I don’t mind points. I already have so many points this season it’s going to be fine for me.
John McEnroe
I think it was a mistake by Wimbledon to kick out the Russians and Belarusians. Compounded by the fact that now the ATP and WTA say no [ranking] points, I don’t see how that helps the players. If the players really believe that Wimbledon has made a big mistake by not allowing them to play, they should have boycotted the tournament.
