Swiss tennis star Stan Wawrinka who has won three Grand Slam titles in his career so far has raised his objections against the principle the four major tournaments operate on. Wawrinka has claimed that these major tournaments are eyeing to take over the tennis ecosystem and also says that they don’t work for the vision of tennis.
The 38-year-old who had an early exit from the 2024 Indian Wells has talked about the four Grand Slam tournaments trying to build a premium tour. Wawrinka has claimed that if it happens, the ATP 250 and ATP 500 tournaments will eventually die, affecting the lower-ranked players.
Notably, Australian Open director Craig Tiley has proposed a Premium Tour which would see “somewhere between 11 and 14 combined events join the grand slams in a new circuit”. The players have also been briefed about it already and as per reports, the progress is positive.
A Premium Tour will mean that “high-profile events such as Indian Wells, Cincinnati, and Rome would ‘step up’ to the Premium Tour, while their “less prestigious cousins would effectively be downgraded onto a so-called Development Tour.”
Stan Wawrinka not happy with what’s brewing
Amid these developments, Stan Wawrinka has raised his objections. The 38-year-old has claimed that the Grand Slam tournaments are not working for the vision of tennis. Wawrinka is not happy with whatever is brewing among the authorities.
The three-time Grand Slam champion has alleged that they are trying to kill the tournaments that offer lesser ranking points.
The Grand Slams have zero transparency on their accounts. They do not work for the vision of the future of tennis, have no desire to work in the direction of the players and the youngest, to cut part of their cake. Their proposals are to have even more power, to make the ATP and the WTA disappear, to keep the Masters 1000, and to kill the 500 and the 250. Stan Wawrinka said to L’Equipe.
It is worth mentioning that the Premium Tour project is under discussion. While the ATP is hesitant to go that way, the WTA is all-in for the project considering the fact that it would significantly boost their revenue and also their promise to provide equal pay to women’s tennis players will be fulfilled.
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