Eliminated in the first round of Roland-Garros this Tuesday by the Polish Magdalena Prch (7-6 (4), 6-0), the Tunisian Ons Jabeur took the opportunity to criticize the programming of matches in night session during the tournament. According to her, this organization penalizes the visibility of female tennis, leaving an impression of injustice and lack of valuation for the players.
The old world number 2 has pointed out an inequitable treatment of female sport in general, and tennis in particular. She deplores that decision -makers do not seem to take into account the importance of highlighting female performance.
“Those who make these decisions probably do not have girls, otherwise they would not treat them like this,” she said, denouncing an irony in the fact that female tennis is less shown because spectators would look more at men.
Ons Jabeur stresses that this situation is a vicious circle: “We do not show women’s tennis, so fans watch the female matches less”. She criticizes the federation and the tournament broadcasters for having signed contracts that do not promote a better exhibition of large female meetings, which limits the visibility and recognition of players.
She gave as an example long -awaited matches, like the one between Naomi Osaka and Paula Badosa, who were not scheduled in night session despite their quality and audience potential. According to Jabeur, these meetings deserve more attention, like the duel between Iga Swiatek and Naomi Osaka the previous year, which had benefited from better programming.
In conclusion, the Tunisian player calls for an urgent change in the way of promoting female tennis during major tournaments. For her, it is essential to break this imbalance to promote equality and guarantee that the best players benefit from the visibility they deserve on the international scene.
