Thiem: “There are many, many players who do not put sport above everything else and do not live professionally.”
10:14 a.m., United Kingdom, Tuesday April 28, 2020
World number 3 Dominic Thiem has rejected the idea that top tennis players should contribute to helping lower-ranked competitors.
Novak Djokovic, the best player in the world Last week he urged his fellow professionals to contribute to a fund set up by the sport’s main governing bodies.
The fund will help players most financially impacted by a shutdown that began in March and will continue until at least mid-July due to the coronavirus pandemic.
But Austria’s Thiem said he believed some sections of society needed more urgent help than competitors during the economic crisis caused by the pandemic.
And the 26-year-old, a three-time Grand Slam finalist, criticized the attitude of some lower-level Futures circuit players, which he said meant they did not deserve help from the sport’s top players.
He told the Austrian newspaper Crown: “I have seen players on the ITF-Tour who are not 100 percent committed to the sport.
“A lot of them are really unprofessional.
“I don’t see why I should give them money. I prefer to give it to people and institutions that really need it.
“There is no profession in the world where you are guaranteed to succeed and benefit from high income at the start of your career.
“None of the top players took anything for granted. We all had to fight to climb the rankings.”
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