Latest news with #AmelieMauresmo
BBC News
2 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Scheduling pleas 'like hitting head against wall'
French Open 2025Dates: 25 May-8 June Venue: Roland GarrosCoverage: Live radio commentaries across 5 Live Sport and BBC Sounds, plus live text commentaries on the BBC Sport website and app Jessica Pegula says she feels like she is "hitting her head against the wall" over the annual discussion around the lack of women's night matches at the French of the night sessions during the first eight days of this year's Roland Garros have featured a women's singles has led to accusations that not scheduling women's matches there implies female players are not "worthy" of the slot - something strongly rejected by French Open tournament director Amelie Wimbledon finalist Ons Jabeur said "honouring one side of the sport shouldn't mean ignoring the other" in an impassioned social media post on about the scheduling, American third seed Pegula said: "Every year it's the same thing. It's never equal."We are an event that is supposed to be equal. Why not give us some more chances to be?"It feels like just hitting my head against the wall because I feel like we have been talking about this for two, three, four [years] - probably forever, to be honest, because it's never been equal." Sunday will be the 22nd successive evening in Paris where a women's singles match is not featured - a run stretching back to 2023, when Aryna Sabalenka beat Sloane a news conference on Friday, Mauresmo said no women's players have complained directly to her about the former women's world number one added: "the message has never been the girls are not worthy of playing at night". Saturday's evening match - the slot most coveted for television audiences - sees men's Serb sixth seed Novak Djokovic face Austria's Filip Misolic, while Sunday night will see Holger Rune face Lorenzo Musetti."The women's game has been writing its own legacy loudly, brilliantly, and for far too long without too much recognition," Jabeur wrote on social media."The game is not asking to be seen. It is already shining."Pegula, who plays Frenchwoman Lois Boisson in the fourth round on Monday, said she supports Jabeur's message."I'm happy that she's able to speak up, and she's always been really good at wanting everything to be equal and fighting for not just where she's from, but also for women in general," Pegula added."I'm with her and I think we have proven that we deserve the same amount of opportunity."
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Lopsided scheduling at Roland Garros remains depressingly familiar, writes MATTHEW LAMBWELL, the truth is the French Open's night session is a flawed concept to begin with
Deja vu, plus ca change - pick your local phrase but whichever way you slice it, the French Open 's lopsided scheduling remains depressingly familiar. After seven days of the tournament, every prime-time night session match has been a men's singles. The first match on Philippe Chatrier - when it's always half-empty because the locals are having lunch - has been a women's singles every day. Amelie Mauresmo did her usual mid-tournament press conference and was taken to task once again. 'The same questions year after another,' said the 45-year-old. 'Same answers,' replied her interrogator. Quite. 'We have to take it into consideration the 15,000 spectators coming in for the night session,' said Mauresmo. 'Since men's tennis is played at the best-of-five sets, three sets will be played at a minimum. It's complicated for us to do otherwise.' To sum up her position: when there is only one match in the night session, we will always go for a men's match because that guarantees the punters a minimum of three sets, rather than two. Why can't you have two matches, a men's and a women's? Because then the night session would finish too late. Why can't you start it earlier? Because people wouldn't be able to get there in time after leaving work, so the stands would be empty for the first match. It is not easy to argue with any of her reasoning, but that does not make the end result any more palatable. The truth is, the Roland Garros night session is a flawed concept to begin with. The contract with Amazon Prime Video - shaving off that one match per day from the main domestic TV deal - should never have been signed. It is a cash grab - both for TV rights and the ability to fleece fans by selling two separate tickets for one day of action. Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam remaining without a night session - and we can thank Wandsworth council's 11pm curfew for that. But in Melbourne and New York they always have two evening matches - one men's, one women's. If you can't do that, they don't have a night session – this event managed just fine for 120 years without one. It's too bloody cold in Paris in May for watching tennis at midnight, anyway – remember all the fans tucked up in blankets for Nadal v Djokovic in 2022? Mauresmo's lack of empathy and awareness on this issue is staggering. How can a former WTA star fail to understand - or acknowledge - the importance of visibility and platforming for the women's game? Women's tennis in France is going to the dogs – they have no one in the world's top 70. How are Mauresmo and Co going to change that when little girls come home from school, watch their national tournament and are greeted by a female-free zone?
BreakingNews.ie
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- BreakingNews.ie
Novak Djokovic scheduled to play during Champions League final
Novak Djokovic has had his request to watch the Champions League final denied after being scheduled to play on Saturday night. A host of top players, including Paris St Germain fan Arthur Fils, had pleaded with organisers to ensure their third-round matches did not clash with the big game against Inter Milan in Munich. Advertisement Djokovic even said after his win over Corentin Moutet: 'It's going to be PSG that I will support. Novak Djokovic will play on Saturday night (Lindsey Wasson/AP) 'I will definitely watch it if I'm not playing the night session. Yeah, that will be nice. FYI, Roland Garros schedule…' But the 24-time grand slam champion received bad news on Friday afternoon as his clash with Austrian Filip Misolic will begin at 8.15pm local time, 45 minutes before the final kicks off. Roland Garros tournament director Amelie Mauresmo does not believe the football will disrupt the tournament. Advertisement 'The Champions League final won't change much for us,' she said. 'We are trying to do the utmost for the tournament. We are very happy for PSG but we are organising our own event. 'There will be 15,000 people here so we want to give them the best possible match. 'We can't prohibit people to watch their telephone and to follow the football match simultaneously. Advertisement 'There won't be 10 or 20 goals. If once or twice we have a bit of an uproar, it's going to be fine.'
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
French Open players often make schedule requests. No one wanted to miss the Champions League final
Tournament director Amelie Mauresmo, left, PSG soccer player Ousmane Dembele and French Tennis Federation president Gilles Moretton pose during the draw of French Open tennis tournament, Thursday, May 22, 2025 at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) Coco Gauff of the U.S. celebrates winning against Tereza Valentova of the Czech Republic following their second round match of the French Tennis Open, at the Roland-Garros stadium, in Paris, Thursday, May 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) France's Arthur Fils celebrates beating Spain's Jaume Munar after their second round match of the French Tennis Open, at the Roland-Garros stadium, in Paris, Thursday, May 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) Serbia's Novak Djokovic reacts as he plays France's Corentin Moutet during their second round match of the French Tennis Open, at the Roland-Garros stadium, in Paris, Thursday, May 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) Serbia's Novak Djokovic reacts as he plays France's Corentin Moutet during their second round match of the French Tennis Open, at the Roland-Garros stadium, in Paris, Thursday, May 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) Tournament director Amelie Mauresmo, left, PSG soccer player Ousmane Dembele and French Tennis Federation president Gilles Moretton pose during the draw of French Open tennis tournament, Thursday, May 22, 2025 at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) Coco Gauff of the U.S. celebrates winning against Tereza Valentova of the Czech Republic following their second round match of the French Tennis Open, at the Roland-Garros stadium, in Paris, Thursday, May 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) France's Arthur Fils celebrates beating Spain's Jaume Munar after their second round match of the French Tennis Open, at the Roland-Garros stadium, in Paris, Thursday, May 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) Serbia's Novak Djokovic reacts as he plays France's Corentin Moutet during their second round match of the French Tennis Open, at the Roland-Garros stadium, in Paris, Thursday, May 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) PARIS (AP) — The French Open isn't the only sports event in Europe drawing attention from tennis players: The Champions League final will decide the continent's best soccer club, and one of the two teams involved Saturday night is Paris Saint-Germain, whose stadium is a couple of blocks from Roland-Garros. Count Novak Djokovic among those rooting for PSG against Italy's Inter Milan, and he hoped to be able to tune in on TV to watch the big clash that'll be held in Munich, Germany. So Djokovic made that preference known to the people in charge of arranging the program at the clay-court Grand Slam tournament he's won three times — a common practice, especially among the sport's elite. Advertisement They often ask to be scheduled at a certain time. Or to avoid a certain time. 'I will definitely watch it if I'm not playing (in the) night session. Yeah, that will be nice,' Djokovic said with a big smile. 'FYI, Roland-Garros schedule.' Hint, hint. Except his plea went unheeded: When Saturday's order of play was released Friday, 24-time major champion Djokovic's third-round match against Filip Misolic was the one picked for under the lights at Court Philippe-Chatrier due to begin at 8:15 p.m. local time, 45 minutes before Inter Milan vs. PSG starts. Others who begged off from competing at that hour got their wish. Although one, Arthur Fils, the 14th-seeded Frenchman who grew up near Paris and is a big PSG fan, wound up pulling out of the tournament because of a back injury after being placed in an afternoon match against No. 17 Andrey Rublev. Advertisement 'We have many requests from players' every day, tournament director Amélie Mauresmo said. 'There's no fixed rule. We try to accommodate everyone as much as possible. That includes requests from players, broadcasters and spectators. ... It's a real puzzle, I won't lie.' Coco Gauff said she doesn't often ask for a certain time slot, but when she does, it's usually related to competing in singles and doubles on the same day (the American won the French Open doubles title last year but isn't playing doubles this time). The 2023 U.S. Open champion, who is currently No. 2 in singles, has noticed that events tend to listen more to elite players than others. 'If you're ranked a little bit higher, they'll hear more of your input, for sure,' Gauff said. 'To be honest, I think it's rightfully deserved. I feel like if you do well on tour, win so many tournaments, you should have a little bit more priority when it comes to that.' Advertisement Except even the very best of the best don't always have success with these sorts of things. Madison Keys, who was the U.S. Open runner-up in 2017 and won the Australian Open in January, knows what it's like to be ignored. 'Sometimes the request goes (in), they write it down, and they say, 'OK,'' but then don't do anything about it, Keys said. 'I really think that it's just kind of up to what the tournament wants, what TV wants, things like that,' she added. 'Sometimes you kind of get what you ask for. And other times, you get the complete opposite.' Just ask Djokovic. 'Whatever they schedule me, I have to accept,' he said earlier this season. 'I think I earned my right to ... (communicate) with the tournament management, where I can express what I would like, depending on a given day, depending on the opponent.' Advertisement ___ Associated Press writer Tom Nouvian contributed to this report. ___ Howard Fendrich has been the AP's tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: More AP tennis:
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
French Open sexism scheduling row erupts as Ons Jabeur blasts lack of visibility given to women's tennis - as organisers defend men dominating prime-time night slot
The French Open has once again been gripped by a sexist scheduling row as Ons Jabeur hit out at the lack of visibility given to women's tennis at the event. Last year, every match chosen for the prime-time night session slot was a men's match - and the same again every day this year so far. Roland Garros tournament director Amelie Mauresmo - ironically a former WTA star herself - remain utterly unapologetic about the lopsided scheduling. There is limited outcry among the players themselves, mostly because the night session is generally seen as an inconvenient time to compete. Four-time champion Iga Swiatek likes to play early in the day, so her attitude to the whole thing can be summed up as: I'm alright Jack. But Jabeur is one of the few to see the bigger picture: that women's tennis has to fight for greater visibility. You don't have to agree , just read with an open heart❤️ — Ons Jabeur (@Ons_Jabeur) May 30, 2025 'I hope whoever is making the decision, I don't think they have daughters, because I don't think they want to treat their daughters like this,' said the Tunisian earlier in the week. 'It's a bit ironic. They don't show women's sport, they don't show women's tennis, and then they say, 'Yeah, but mostly they watch men." 'Of course they watch men more because you show men more. Everything goes together.' And on Friday she posted a long message on X: 'The women's game has been writing its own legacy loudly, brilliantly, and for far too long without full recognition.' In her mid-tournament press conference, Mauresmo was repeatedly taken to task over the lopsided scheduling. To sum up her position: when there is only one match in the night session, we will always go for a men's match because that guarantees the punters a minimum of three sets, rather than two. Why can't you have two matches, a men's and a women's? Because then the night session would finish too late. Why can't you start it earlier? Because people wouldn't be able to get there in time after leaving work, so the stands would be empty for the first match. It is not easy to argue with any of her reasoning, but that does not make the end result any less palatable.
