'That’s not what we are saying': Amelie Mauresmo clashes with reporter over women’s night match snub

French Open tournament director Amélie Mauresmo clashed with a reporter amid ongoing criticism over the absence of women in the night sessions. So far in the tournament, only men’s matches have been scheduled for the night session on Philippe Chatrier, drawing sharp backlash in the tennis world.

Just a few days ago, Ons Jabeur was the first to express her frustration with the decision to feature only men in the night session — the marquee match of the day. Around the same time, World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka was relegated to Court Suzanne Lenglen, while World No. 10 Holger Rune headlined on Philippe Chatrier.

In a recent press conference, former World No. 1 Mauresmo addressed the criticism after a journalist brought up the issue. “What do you think the consequences are of essentially telling women that they’re not worthy?” asked the reporter.

The Frenchwoman did not take kindly to the implication. “That’s not what we are saying. I have to stop you right there,” she said.

Reporter: “That’s the message I think that a lot of girls receive,” the journalist responded. “I think sometimes people have to think about also not necessarily what they’re saying, but how their message is being received. What do you think are the consequences of how the message is being received?”

Mauresmo seemed bothered by the journalist’s assumption and denied any suggestion that women don’t deserve the main court spotlight. “For me the message I always said and I will repeat.. as I said, the conditions haven’t changed from having one unique match in the evening,” she claimed.

Mauresmo: “For me, the message is not changing. It has never been that the girls are not worthy to play at night. It’s never been this. I will not accept that you carry this message. That’s really clear to me,” the former world No. 1 stated. “What I’m saying is I’m talking and we are talking, because I’m not the only one to make the decisions, about potential match length. In this perspective, it is hard to say that the two sets can go really fast when the 3 sets, you have 3 sets minimum.”

Mauresmo: “So it’s.. I don’t know.. 1 and a half hours, 2 hours, maybe more, I don’t know. For me it’s the length of the matches. It’s not how they play or the level they reach right now, especially right now. I’m not talking about this. I mean, what would you do?”

Reporter: “What would I do? You really wanna know?” insistió el reportero. “I would solve the problem so the women don’t receive the message that you’re not trying to give them.”

Mauresmo: “That’s what you think the message is. That’s your interpretation.”

Reporter: “I have 3 daughters. That’s what they think the message is. That’s what many women in the room feel the message is. So I guess I would listen to them to start.”

The tournament director, a two-time Grand Slam champion, stood firm in her position and chose not to continue the debate. “You know, we wouldn’t have this conversation… maybe we talk about it on last Sunday,” Amélie Mauresmo concluded.