A simmering dispute between players and the Grand Slams over revenue sharing intensified at the French Open, with Novak Djokovic warning the sport risked further fragmentation as leading players pressed for a greater voice in shaping its future.

Several players were expected to limit their appearances at Friday’s traditional pre-tournament media day to 15 minutes, and to not conduct any additional multi-media interviews. The tensions have been building for weeks, but the rhetoric sharpened in Paris.

American Taylor Fritz insisted that grievances were not just about “wanting more money.” “It’s about just wanting what’s fair,” he said. “As the tournaments make more money, we obviously want to see the revenue shared back to the players reflect that.”

Russian Andrey Rublev painted a picture of a widening disconnect between players and the sport’s leadership. “When you try to communicate for so many years … they don’t hear you. They don’t answer,” Rublev said, noting that official mails go unanswered for months.

World number one Aryna Sabalenka cast the debate as a struggle on behalf of the sport’s lesser lights. “It’s not about me. It’s about the players who’s lower in the ranking, who is suffering,” she said. “But as the world number one, I feel like I have to stand up and to fight for those players.”

However, players adopted a more cautious tone over the prospect of a boycott. Iga Swiatek stopped short of endorsing drastic action: “I don’t think doing something that is not constructive will make sense.”

Djokovic said he was not personally involved in the planned 15-minute media action, but aligned himself with broader concerns. “Grand Slams, governing bodies, the governing tours, everyone. We are very fragmented,” he said, citing golf’s LIV Golf split as a warning.

While top ATP and WTA events redistribute around 22 percent of revenues to players, the Grand Slams are estimated to return closer to 15 percent. French Open organisers argue tournament profits fund entire national tennis ecosystems, not just prize money.

Source: www.aljazeera.com