The second Grand Slam of 2025 is fast approaching, as fans look forward to the stars of men’s and women’s tennis taking to the court in Paris.
World number one Jannik Sinner won the Australian Open men’s singles title earlier this year, securing his third Major crown with a straight sets victory over Alexander Zverev.
On the women’s side, America’s Madison Keys won her first Grand Slam, taking down Aryna Sabalenka in a three-set thriller on Rod Laver Arena.
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At Roland Garros, Iga Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz will look to defend their titles despite struggling for form as of late.
Ahead of the French Open, one former Grand Slam champion has shared his thoughts on a rumor he heard recently.
Andy Roddick says he ‘hopes’ the rumor of top 20 players asking Slams for more prize money is true
Speaking on his Served with Andy Roddick podcast, 2003 US Open champion Andy Roddick gave his honest opinion on something he heard last week.
“Prize money, percentage of prize money, is insane, it’s laughably low,” said Roddick.
“I hope the rumors of the top 20 [players] on the men’s and women’s side writing a letter directly representing themselves to the Slams is true.
“It’s been reported, hopefully, we’ll know more about it, and we’ll talk more about it when it is confirmed. I hope that’s the case.”
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News broke earlier this month that the top 20 players in tennis sent a letter to the four Grand Slams, requesting an increase to prize money, relative to the revenue the events generate.
Roddick then named the two other improvements he thinks players should be demanding from the Grand Slams.
“I’m going to beat this drum as much as I can, healthcare contributions from Slams [and] pensions,” he said.
“Think about yourself not three weeks from now but 30 years from now.
“Think about the people that are trying to be coaches, think about the people who are carving out a living, think about what your body is going to feel like.
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“I feel a lot different at 42, having gone through 15 years of professional tennis than probably most 42-year-olds.
“Ask those questions now so you can reap the benefits later.”
Andy Roddick says he would ‘co-sign’ one section of the PTPA lawsuit
The Professional Tennis Players Association [PTPA] launched a lawsuit against the tennis tours earlier this year, demanding changes in several key areas.
Roddick expressed his concerns with the PTPA’s case but has now shared the one point they made he is definitely on board with.
Photo by Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images for PTPA
“I would say actually make it, if you’re an independent contractor then you have free markets to play whatever events,” he said.
“There is an incentive already to play in as many ATP [Tour events] and Slams as possible because of points.
“Every rank, every endorsement is structured off of rankings that you get from those tournaments. You’re incentivized to participate in them as much as possible.
“As Chris Eubanks mentioned a couple of weeks ago, if he gets some outlier offer to go play in something crazy or a corporate event or a Pro-am before the US Open or something where he can make a third round Slam money in a day.
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“I think he should be able to do that.
“The PTPA mentioned that, for as many issues as I have that they get wrong, they pointed that out very clearly and I think that was something that I would co-sign for sure.”
It remains to be seen what the outcome of the letter sent by top tennis stars or the PTPA case will be, but it will certainly be something to watch out for in 2025.
Perhaps some of the changes proposed will be brought in ahead of the French Open, which begins on Sunday, May 25.