“We want more money, they, maybe, don’t want to give us as much money when we talk about the prize money,” said Novak Djokovic before the 2025 AO, asserting that the prize money in tennis is a problem. He asked the authorities to learn from American sports. Even his close friend and Aussie tennis player, Nick Kyrgios, labeled the share of revenue received by players as a “joke.” The prize money in men’s tennis has increased significantly in the last five years, but still, there is dissatisfaction among the players. And, the situation is no different on the women’s side! Recently, the top 20 men’s and women’s players sent a letter to the four Grand Slams asking for more prize money. Shortly after that, the American star Jessica Pegula voiced that appeal again in an interview with the Tennis Channel. What did she say?

As per several reports, professional tennis players receive a significantly lower share of total revenue compared to athletes in other major sports. According to PTPA, tennis players typically receive about 17.5% of the total revenue generated by the sport (NBA players receive approximately 50% of the league’s total revenue). Addressing this grave concern, top 20 players in the world, including Novak Djokovic, Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, Jannik Sinner, and many more, have reportedly joined forces to seek increased prize money, more financial support for player welfare programs, and a say in “decisions that directly impact competition.”

So, how much do Grand Slams currently pay in prize money? Last year’s US Open had the most lucrative prize pot in tennis history at $75 million (a 15% increase from 2023), while Wimbledon offered a tournament-record $65 million. The other two, i.e., AO had a prize pool of around $60 million (12% increase in 2024) while the French Open had offered around $59 million (more than a 7.8% increase from 2023).

But why this letter all of a sudden requesting more prize money? Well, it comes at a time of growing tension between tennis players and the governing bodies of the sport, with the recent lawsuit filed by the PTPA against ATP, WTA, ITF, and ITIA. which lists 12 players as plaintiffs alongside the association itself. It has now become the talk of the town in the tennis world.

Recently, after securing her spot in the final of the 2025 Charleston Open, Jessica Pegula was asked what’s the next thing that she’d like to see in terms of women’s sports getting to another level. Responding to that, she said, “I could go really in-depth, but I think just continuing to keep growing at least for tennis revenue shares at the slams. Not just us but the men as well!” The 30-year-old further added, “Getting TV deals bigger, getting more exposure because I really do think it’s, if not the most entertaining women’s sport.”

Pegula then went on to echo Aryna Sabalenka’s words, claiming, “Maybe I’m a little biased because I play a bit I mean I prefer watching women than men sometimes because they’re just hitting aces and running down every ball and it’s the same like kind of point everytime and I love the drama in women’s sports right now. I mean, anybody can upset anybody. There’s so much depth, and you never know what’s going to happen every single week. So, it’s entertaining.“

What do the other tennis stars have to say regarding the prize money in modern-day tennis? Emma Navarro cited “unfair pay ratios” as a reason for putting her name to the letter. Even Casper Rudd admitted, “As a player, I don’t feel like it’s fair… If you compare with other major sports around the world, the NFL, MLB, and NBA, they are closer to 50 percent revenue sharing.” WTA star Qinwen Zheng said this effort is a “positive benefit for all the tennis players.”

Amid all these turmoils off the court, Jessica Pegula has also managed to enter another final on the Tour – this time an all-American final in Charleston. It’s the first all-American final in Charleston since 1990, when Martina Navratilova (who became a US citizen in 1981) beat Jennifer Capriati. What was Pegula’s reaction after securing her spot in the Charleston final?

“Glad I could flip that script…” – Jessica Pegula shares her thoughts after her SF win in Charleston

Jessica Pegula was halted in the SF in the previous two editions of the Charleston Open. However, this time she finally managed to book her spot in the summit clash of the WTA 500 green clay event, where she will face her compatriot Sofia Kenin. In the SF, Pegula took down Ekaterina Alexandrova by 6-2,2-6,7-5. Following that hard-fought victory, the world number 4 said, “That was a tough match. It wasn’t the prettiest it was really windy, there were some awkward shots, we were both very uncomfortable, I feel like, on some short balls, some low balls, it was kind of swirling in the wind so it was just trying not to get frustrated, having to move your feet a lot and just competing.”

With this win, Pegula has now taken her win-loss record to 24-6 this season. Will she be able to clinch her second title of the season (the first one came at the ATX Open)? Time will tell! But she was very happy with her performance in the Round of 4. “Played a good first set, she comes back in the second, and then, usually, I tend to lose the third. So glad I could flip that script today,” the US Open finalist said.

Jessica Pegula has a 3-2 record over Sofia Kenin in H2H. Do you think she can extend her lead over Kenin, who hasn’t yet dropped a set yet in this tournament? Or will the Floridian level things up against the New Yorker in this all-American clash? Share your thoughts in the comment below.