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Aryna Sabalenka, of Belarus, returns the ball to Hailey Baptiste, of the United States, during the Madrid Open tennis tournament in Madrid, April 28, 2026
ARYNA SABALENKA warned the grand slam tournaments today that a player boycott could be on the cards.
A group of 20 leading players, including Sabalenka and fellow world number one Jannik Sinner, released a statement on Sunday night expressing “deep disappointment“ at the prize money on offer at the French Open later this month.
Speaking to reporters in Rome ahead of the Italian Open, Sabalenka said: “I feel like the show is on us.
“I feel like without us there wouldn’t be a tournament and there wouldn’t be that entertainment. I feel like definitely we deserve to be paid more percentage.
“What can I say? I just really hope that all of the negotiation that we are having, we at some point are going to get to the right decision, to the conclusion that everyone will be happy with.”
Asked if the players would consider boycotting tournaments if their demands were not met, the Belarusian added: “I think at some point we will boycott it.
“I feel like that’s going to be the only way to kind of fight for our rights.”
