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In light of recent rumours about a merger between the WTA and the ATP, the vice president of the Kazakhstan Tennis Federation thinks the WTA is in deplorable condition.
The organization’s advisor for foreign relations, Yuri Polsky, also discussed the financial problem with the Russian newspaper Championat.
He has sensationally claimed that the WTA will likely file for bankruptcy in a few years.
According to the report, the Kazakh official makes the claim that the WTA has hastily added more top-tier tournaments in order to give more incentives and increase revenue. However, he believes that this move is a desperate act that, if not done correctly, could result in them being in dire financial straits.
Crucially, Polsky feels that the financial situation of the WTA Tour could scupper any prospective merger with the ATP.
“They are in a very bad place and could even go bankrupt in 2026 or 2027 if their financial situation doesn’t change,” Polsky said.
“For the WTA ,it is a matter of survival; for the ATP-a matter of reputation. [ATP leadership] doesn’t want them to collapse because the optics would be bad. The ATP is in good financial shape, the tour has reserves, the players have retirement funds,” he continued.
“The ATP is exploring its options; the question is, on what conditions could the merger be achieved? It is unclear what ATP’s share [in a merged business] would be and to what extent the ATP is willing to subsidize the WTA,” he added.
The Kazakh Federation have butted heads with the WTA over issues surrounding their No 1 player Elena Rybakina.
Other figures in tennis have declared their support for a potential merger between the governing bodies.
Among them is former professional turned TV pundit Alex Corretja.
“It would be amazing, I think it would be brilliant,” Corretja told Eurosport.
“All these tournaments (Grand Slams) are very successful because they play with men and women combined.
“Also, we need to understand that it’s not that easy to make a whole 100% merge because you need to have special venues.
“But now we have four Slams. We have so many Master 1000s as well, which they play together. A merger would be great because the ATP and WTA would try to be as close as possible. It can get a little bit confusing with the ATP, WTA and ITF tournaments, but the intention is there and it would be great news for everyone. Hopefully they can work it out.”
Neither body has confirmed any plans for a merger at this stage.
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