tenniscourtship

[tenniscourtship]

Let me just address this real quick

Listen, I couldn't care less what your opinion on the matter is, but don't come in here acting like you know better than me, and like people who advocate for equal pay in tennis haven't been given these tired excuses over and over from people that assume we can't think for ourselves. We tend not to think with our genitals, especially when it comes to serious issues like this one.

Female players are not inferior just because less people watch their matches or because the public buy less female apparel from Nike (though seriously this one made me laugh). Women across all sports have to work HARDER than men BECAUSE of these things you mentioned to even stay in the sport, yet they are the exact reason why EQUAL pay is held over their heads in most cases. Top female players feel it less because they get endorsement deals (which are ALSO FAR LOWER than those of their male counterparts), but what about everyone else not named Sharapova, Williams and Osaka, huh? Their SPORT should be the thing granting their livelihood and covering their expenses WHICH ARE THE SAME AS THE MEN'S, not endorsement deals.

And before you try with the "Oh so should wheelchair tennis players be paid the same as the able-bodied because they work just as hard??"

CATEGORIES, MF, HAVE YOU HEARD OF THEM?

Male and female wheelchair tennis players should be paid equally too, and it would be great if they all could earn more in general because I'm SURE the governing bodies of tennis can afford it, but they're a WHOLE OTHER CATEGORY. Maybe you wouldn't have brought it up but I'm just covering all my bases here, because I've seen it all when it comes to people like you.

By the way, very rich of you to talk about hate and prejudice when I AM THE ONE SPEAKING UP AGAINST THE HATE AND PREJUDICE WOMEN GET FOR DEMANDING EQUAL RIGHTS. And how much do you have to hate yourself to unironically say something like "EqUaL pAy I hAvE a VaGiNa" as a woman? Holy shit I expect this from men but from other women, it actually saddens me so much. I'm so lucky I haven't been contaminated like this.

You are FREE to continue blindly supporting your fave and being as ignorant as he is, but coming here with this hollier-than-thou attitude like you're somehow better informed than I am? Oh honey, you couldn't have picked a worse person to do this to. I don't know what prompted you to come say shit about it a whole-ass year later, but let me not-so-kindly redirect you to your seat because I ain't gonna spend any more time on this.

[tenniscourtship]

I am no longer a Rafael Nadal fan

In light of the recent comments made by Rafael Nadal regarding equal pay for women in tennis, I have decided to discontinue my support of him. There aren’t strong enough words to express how much this hurts me, but there are plenty to explain why I’ve made this decision. If you are interested, please continue reading.

As women, we don’t have the privilege of counting on people’s support, not even among ourselves a lot of times. In fact, you’ll sooner find women banding together to support a man than another woman, no matter the situation. I don’t know why that is - maybe women really do still think it’s safe to side with men. My own sense of security supporting Rafael Nadal for as long as I have was immense. He was my pillar, my rock. He had all of my trust, down to the last drop. I looked up to him, I related to his struggles, I needed to know that he was happy and thriving at all times to be able to be happy, myself. His trajectory and accomplishments made my heart swell with pride, his shortcomings had as much impact on me as my own. I loved and cared about him the way I love and care about less than a handful of people in my life.

And I live a sad enough life that I needed all of this. I needed to wake up in the morning, every morning, and be able to love and cherish him. I needed to worry about him and want the best for him. I needed him as my compass, I needed his strength, I needed to never give up, just like he never did, in face of so many adversities. I needed to hold onto him as one of the very few good men out there.

As it turns out though, he’s not.

His answer to the equal pay question posed by that magazine was ignorant at best, vile at worst. He sounded no different than the assholes I have dutifully fought against at the tennis subreddit almost every day for the last two years, and much longer than that elsewhere. The comparison he made is wrong and stupid and not even in my saddest dreams I would have imagined he could think like that. Not even in my worst nightmares I’d have anticipated “hearing” from his mouth the same kind of misogynistic, disgusting things I see male tennis fans (and certain other players) spewing any time the subject of equal pay comes up. This is not who I thought he was. My trust has been irreparably shattered.

There were basically two things I was proud of in my life: having my priorities and principles set straight, and Rafael Nadal. Never had I thought that those things would be at odds with each other someday. All this time I felt confident and safe knowing that I stood with the right people, on the right side. But suddenly he wasn’t on the same side as me anymore, and I had two options: I could cross over to the other side with him, or I could stay. I stayed, and I will do so until the day I die. I’ll also have you know that the choice was not hard to make; I’ve been a feminist longer than I’ve been a Rafael Nadal fan, after all. It’s the fact that I even have to make it that hurts, and it hurts really, really bad.

How unfair it is that women don’t really get to look up to male figures without the ever-present chance of suffering such huge disappointment and whiplash. I can take responsibility for putting him on a pedestal and thinking he could do no wrong, but I refuse to feel guilty about the love and admiration I dedicated to him while under the impression that he was different. Note that I use the word ‘different’ here, not perfect, because I never once thought that was what he was. His flaws, as much as his qualities, were what captivated me from the moment I first saw him. But this is one flaw I can’t look past, because it’s a flaw of character, and one I never thought he, out of all people, would have.

No excuse or apology can ever make this better for me, now that I know this is what he truly thinks of women, now that I know that he agrees with how women are still treated in this sport. Because the way women are still treated in tennis is the way women are still treated everywhere: as lesser beings whose work nobody cares about, worth only whatever men decide they’re worth, forever waiting for men to spare them some coins from their millions while working just as hard, if not harder, than them. Even if I tried, I could not turn a blind eye to this in order to continue being his fan. This kind of thinking revolts me to my core, makes me sick, and I’ll never come to terms with the fact that he is now one of the sources of these feelings for me.

I feel angry and betrayed, and also like I’ve lost my bearings. He was too important to me, an integral part of my life that is now gone. If this sounds like he died, it’s because he did to me, and so did whatever was left of my trust of people. I  won’t be able to watch tennis for quite some time while I mourn this loss, and who knows if I’ll ever again. As anyone in a lifelong battle with depression will know, it’s hard to get yourself to care about anything other than wanting to die, and it’s even harder when we finally manage to just to have it ripped off of our lives suddenly, way too fast, like a band-aid. C’est la vie though.

If anyone else is taking this as hard as I am, feel free to reach out if you need someone to talk. I’m sorry we have to go through this.

#Rafael Nadal #tennis

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#Daria Gavrilova #WTA #tennis

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Now I am in semifinals of the Grand Slam of US Open, and I think is as important as if Rafa arrive to semifinals, no? So maybe it’s just easier when, in your country, Rafa has all the attention and you are very without this pressure, no? I don’t know. Sometimes is good; sometimes is not good (smiling).

Pablo Carreno Busta (x)

#Pablo Carreño-Busta #tennis

[tenniscourtship]

Thanks for answering my questions! The only reason I'm not sure is because I've rarely seen them together (roger and mirka) and I don't think I've ever seen a picture where he's looking at her as fondly as he does Rafa but who knows!! I wish I did hahah :)

I feel like I see Roger and Mirka together all the time tbh. When he’s out and about (especially to events where there’s photogs) she’s always with him. They’ve been together a long time so you can kinda excuse them for not acting all lovey-dovey around each other anymore, I guess. But I see the spark in her eyes more than I see in his tho, that’s for sure.

Anyway, feel free to hit me up unanon too if you wanna talk further :) I rather prefer it actually haha

#asks and answers

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#Pablo Carreño-Busta #tennis

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#Madison Keys #Feliciano Lopez #Feli #Gael Monfils #tennis

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get to know me meme- favorite athletes [1/?]:  Alexander Zverev

“I have to say that watching how he trained during the 10 days we spent together in Tampa right before playing Washington, I was shocked by his discipline and commitment towards the game. He wants to improve badly and is working to be one of the greatest.” ~ Juan Carlos Ferrero 

#Alexander Zverev #tennis #this gorgeous kid #another heir to another king

[tenniscourtship]

Hi, thank you for answering my question! :) just one last one then I'll stop haha! Do you think Rogers marriage with Mirka is real then? I'm not sure myself! Thanks again! Xx

Yep, I do. I’m sure there have been some terms and conditions to their r/s from the very beginning, but I think it’s real.

#asks and answers

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#Angelique Kerber #WTA #tennis

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#Pablo Carreño-Busta #tennis

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nextgenfinals Having a laugh 😆 with 🇺🇸 #NextGenATP and friends @reillyopelka & @taylor_fritz! #usopen

#Reilly Opelka #Taylor Fritz #tennis

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Mischa Zverev of Germany cools down between games while playing Sam Querrey on Day Seven of the 2017 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 3, 2017 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City.

#Mischa Zverev #tennis

[tenniscourtship]

Hi! I've just been on your Reddit and I love everything you've said about fedal and all your insights are really interesting! I was just wondering about them being exclusive? You mentioned on Reddit that you think they're now exclusive and they didn't used to be and I was just wondering what made you come to the conclusion they're exclusive now? Thank you xxxx

This is actually really simple, no crazy theories or anything! I just think that once you get older you tend to naturally want to settle down with the person you love? I don’t see Roger fooling around anymore at this point in his life, nor do I see Rafa. I am less sure about Rafa because he’s the single one in this relationship (I mean, you guys know I don’t believe his r/s with Xisca is real at all lol), so unless he’s frequently getting it from Rogi he might be getting it from someone else. That or he’s decided to be faithful once Roger stopped being a ho lmao

Either way, they’re definitely more mature than they were 10 years ago and I believe their feelings for each other followed that maturing process as well. They always knew they’re each other’s end game but now (read: the last 2 or 3 years) it’s time to start acting like it. 

Thanks for the question

#asks and answers

[tenniscourtship]

Sloane Stephens defeats Julia Georges in the US Open ‘17

#Sloane Stephens #WTA #tennis

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x

#Alexander Zverev #tennis #this gorgeous kid #another heir to another king

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Marcelo Melo ask Alexander Zverev about their friendship, cooking and more.

#Alexander Zverev #Marcelo Melo #tennis