Tennis-WTA backs players calls for more off-court privacy at tournaments

By Shrivathsa Sridhar

MELBOURNE, Jan 29 (Reuters) – The WTA said that calls from players for more privacy away from the court at tournaments were entirely valid after broadcasts of Coco Gauff smashing her racket following her quarter-final defeat at the Australian Open sparked intense debate.

Gauff looked for a place without cameras to channel her frustrations shortly after losing to Elina Svitolina on Tuesday and was unhappy to learn that video of her striking her racket repeatedly on the floor near the match call area of Rod Laver Arena had been broadcast worldwide.

Iga Swiatek, Jessica Pegula and Amanda Anisimova were among the players highlighting the lack of privacy and the WTA agreed steps should be taken.

“Recent concerns raised by WTA players at the Australian Open about cameras in off-court player areas are completely valid,” WTA Chair Valerie Camillo said on Thursday.

“This is a very human and fair request – athletes need spaces where they can recover and not feel constantly under scrutiny.

“Providing that space is part of our responsibility as a sport. The WTA is committed to listening to its players and acting on concerns like this.”

Tennis Australia, which organises the year’s opening Grand Slam, said cameras in warm-up and cool-down areas were set up to provide fans with a “deeper connection” to the players, but that it will work with them to find solutions to their concerns.

“We want to listen to the players, we want to really understand what their needs and what their wants are,” tournament director Craig Tiley told the Tennis Channel.

“So, that’s the first question we’ll ask; we’ve heard you and whatever adjustments we need to make we will make.

“It’s a fine line between the player promotion, event promotion, and where the cameras are.”

The WTA said it had already taken steps to reduce the number of cameras in off-court areas at its tournaments.

“We moved to this standard because we agree that there should be clear, respectful boundaries in off-court areas,” the governing body of women’s tennis added, calling for similar action from other stakeholders and broadcasters.

“We believe this issue should be reviewed by tournament organisers and broadcast partners to ensure appropriate boundaries are in place.”

(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Melbourne; Editing by Peter Rutherford)