adminonly 10% of the 1 800 male and 1 400 female professionals make a decent living out of the sport.
“A player outside the top 20 often has no other source of income than their prize money,” said Ukrainian player Sergiy Stakhovsky, who is ranked 103rd in the world.
It is a very different world to that inhabited by the top ranked players, as indicated by the figures in 2012.
Men’s world number one Novak Djokovic won 9,7 million euros in prize money while his female equivalent, Victoria Azarenka won six million.
Those earnings are multiplied by sponsorship deals, appearance money and exhibition tournaments.
Sharapova earns an extra US$20 million a year from endorsements.
Players ranked between 90th and 100th in the world won on average 202 970 euros in prize money in 2012 while it dropped to 75 000 euros for the 150th ranked player and just 20 780 euros for the 200th-rated player.
However, the expenses eat into those sums.
Tax can deduct up to 30% while travel costs, food, hotels, and the price of a coach nibble even more away.
Without the help of a federation, a patron or family, things can become stretched very quickly.
For some players it requires playing team tennis in France, Germany or Switzerland.
“It is with that money that I finance my competing in Australia (which gets underway in January),” admitted Frenchman Marc Gicquel, who is ranked 152nd in the world. — AFP.
Online Reporter