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Grand Slams need to help funding lower down the tennis ladder - Mike Dickson

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How much is it worth for aspiring professionals to get their precious first few points on the rankings computer when starting at the bottom of the ladder? Virtually nothing, in financial terms at least.

A visit to the British Futures event at Newcastle’s delightful Northumberland Club last week emphasised just how little, and highlights a situation that is not much short of embarrassing for the sport. At this neatly-presented tournament on the very bottom rung of the tour you find that winning a first round match in the doubles pays precisely £22 each to the winning pair. Hardly surprising then that these events are seeing an epidemic of players simply scratching from the doubles once they are out of the singles.

A nearby humble Bed and Breakfast alone cost around £40 per night, so competitors are actually losing money to stay on in the tournament. Not that it is a great deal better for the singles contestants. If you reach the semi-finals, for example, the prize money is £316 which is barely enough to cover basic accommodation costs for what will be likely a five-day minimum stay.

Looking to the Future: The Northumberland Club was the host of the Future's Event

The prize money for this Futures event is US $10,000. As LTA coach and former Swedish player Magnus Tideman pointed out, when he made his pro debut 33 years ago at the bottom level the total purse on offer was….US$10,000. Tim Henman has also drawn attention to the fact that his first Challenger level tournament offered $50,000, which was way back in 1990, which is what many still offer today.

Pay problems: Tim Henman says the pay for a Challenger event is the same as when he competed in 1990

It is the financial situation facing lower ranked players that provide context for the massive prize money hikes by the Grand Slams this year, most eyewateringly at Wimbledon. You wonder if the Majors might have been better off – if only the governance of tennis was not so fractured – getting together and using a portion of those huge increases to set up a fund to bolster Futures and Challenger events, which would help a far greater number of rank-and-file professionals who tend to be so reliant on parents, sponsors or national associations.

Yet it is unfair to attach blame to the Slams, which not only showcase the game in such an outstanding way but also pay large contributions to support the game at all levels in their own countries as well as financing the Grand Slam Development Fund to promote tennis around the world. Really it is the ATP Tour, which sanctions Challengers, that should be asking why the Slams are having to step in to prop everyone up and keep players ranked between 60-120 properly solvent, and whether they should be doing more for the wider good.

Sadly tennis is run by an alphabet soup of organisations (it is the ITF that that has the mostly thankless task of running Futures events). Now that peace has broken out over pay at the Slams, surely they could all come together to discuss what has become an equally pressing problem, one that provides huge barriers to entry to the professional game, namely the impoverishment of players trying to start on what is a long and difficult journey.

Standard high lower down the pile you go

Watching some matches at Newcastle was a reminder, as if any were needed, of just how high the standards are lower down the pile. I went to watch 16 year-old Borna Coric, who is straight out central casting  – tall, athletic, talented and volatile of temperament.

Coached out of Northwood’s Virgin Active centre in the scheme run by David Felgate, Alan Jones and Jo Durie he is going to be very good one day, on the assumption that he learns to control his emotions (the sporadic grunting could be toned down, too).

His promise is well-known in tennis’s parish. What was a pleasant surprise was the performance of the player who beat him and went on to win the tournament, 21 year-old Ashley Hewitt.

Not for the first time, you were left wondering how a British player could be ranked so low (beneath 600) when he has a forehand and mobility like that, and remained unpeturbed by the antics from the other end.

From what I saw the Cheshire player should be setting his sights way higher, he is one to keep an eye on.

Guidelines needed to stop parent coaches entering the Chamber of Horrors

An eventful week in Madrid began with John Tomic confirming his place in the Chamber of Horrors of tennis parents after attacking a member of son Bernard’s entourage and, allegedly, his own offspring as well. It is once again a reminder that tennis has to be extremely vigilant on the matter of how parents and coaches behave, with strict guidelines on behaviour, and not just on the women’s tour. The biggest indictment is that nobody was remotely surprised that it was this individual that caused this issue to resurface.

Accused: John Tomic allegedly attacked of his son, Bernard Tomic's, entourage

In the wars: Thomas Drouet, training partner of Bernard Tomic, with a bandaged nose and neck brace after an alleged assault by John Tomic

Unfortunately there will always been social inadequates among parents in tennis, mainly because it requires such an incredible investment of time and, usually, money to produce a player, and because it is fundamentally a brutal sport that stretches the emotions of all concerned.

Sloane admits being naive after Serena blanks her

Sloane Stephens has learned a bit about the brutality of tennis this year in her dealings with Serena Williams, that led to the revealing interview in which she complained about her superstar compatriot doing such things as blanking her and (horror!) unfollowing her on Twitter after she won their testy encounter at the Australian Open.

Naive: Sloane Stephens said she was too brutal in an interview

Having made what looks like a concerted behind-the-scenes effort on both sides to defuse the situation, Sloane says that she was ‘naïve’ to give such a frank interview. Perhaps she was, but at a time when women’s tennis desperately needs to sell itself – although there was good news this week with the WTA’s BT Sport deal - there is no doubt that this is the kind of thing that engages the public and media, who find this sort of rivalry much more interesting than the often corporate and cordial nature of many match-ups in tennis.

Shock: Teen Stephens knocked Serena Williams out of the Australian Open at the beginning of the year

Sloane was definitely naïve – understandably so at her age – in thinking that Serena would be anything other than ruthless. The bottom line for the younger player is that if Serena is being hostile and behaving as if considering her a threat then it is a mark of respect for her game – she should take it as a compliment.

Robson needs a coach who understands her - and not put the pressure on

Laura Robson is searching for another coach, having played with relative freedom after abruptly parting company with Zeljko Krajan during the Madrid Open, (he has moved on quickly to Marcos Baghdatis). Although she narrowly missed out on the quarter finals and should have beaten Ana Ivanovic it was hard to believe you were watching the same Robson who has looked so cloyed at times this year, and seemingly not enjoying herself.

Change of direction: Laura Robson has parted with her coach Zeljko Krajan

It is pretty obvious what needs working on in her game for the new person coming in, whenever that is. What would seem more profoundly important is having someone who understands her and does not act like a pressure pump, as she clearly feels plenty enough of that without having it added to. A degree of enjoyment amid the competitive grind and hard work of the circuit must be important for all players but for the still young Laura, you suspect, it is more important than most.

  More... British tennis has a new national No 3 in form of controversial Australian Klein Nadal romps to third Madrid crown in front of Real's Ronaldo and Co Robson looking to deal some damage at Wimbledon after another up and down week Murray believes he's starting to find his feet on clay at last  








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