© Getty Photographs Sport – Mike Owen
World No. 243 Dejana Radanovic has instructed a reasonably stunning story because the 27-year-old Serbian tennis participant claims she is consistently having extra bills than earnings in tennis and it’s her household who’s mainly serving to her survive and nonetheless be a professional tennis participant.
Radanovic, who can be turning 28 in Might, loved one in all her finest seasons final 12 months when she gained three ITF titles. For Radanovic, it was an awesome season and one thing that she completely wanted after accidents restricted her enjoying time in 2021 and 2022 and brought on her rating to plummet to round No. 1000 on the WTA rankings listing.
However in keeping with former world No. 187 Radanovic, it was removed from supreme in her nice 2023 season as she claims she made cash in just one match performed final 12 months.
“Final 12 months, I profited in just one match, and I performed 17, 18 of them and gained three titles… And that got here within the match in Skopje,” Radanovic instructed Nova RS.
“If the prize pool is $40,000, the winner wins about 10 p.c or so. And it relies upon, in tournaments the place there are 32 tennis gamers within the draw, it’s normally 10 p.c. If there are 48 gamers, she will get even much less. Then, as a winner, I received $4,000 and was within the pink (paid more cash than she gained) after paying for gas, lodge and all the things else.”
Radanovic: I am all the time ‘within the pink’
Over the past couple of years, there have been extra calls to enhance prize cash within the lower-level tournaments so the gamers ranked outdoors the top-200 may make a greater dwelling and provides themselves a greater probability to make one other step of their careers. One of many loudest in these talks has been Novak Djokovic’s PTPA, which has often spoken out concerning the significance of bettering circumstances for the lower-ranked gamers.
On the WTA web site, it says that Radanovic has earned $202,442 to this point in her profession. Additionally, it claims Radanovic netted $18,170 in prize cash in the course of the 2023 season, during which she gained three titles. However Radanovic insists the fact is totally completely different and that she is “hundreds and hundreds of euros within the pink.”
“You’re all the time in some form of a pink zone (adverse zone, paying more cash than really incomes). Tennis is a each bodily and psychological sport, chess in movement. There are such a lot of issues, you might be continually within the pink, so that you all the time end up within the pink,” Radanovic stated.
“Then I might ask myself, like a silly particular person, you exhaust your self a lot that you’d find yourself with hundreds and hundreds of euros within the pink.”
Additional explaining why that is the case, Radanovic stated that there are a number of bills that she must pay repeatedly and value some huge cash.
“One reel of strings for rackets prices 100 euros. And also you want ten of these a 12 months. Then there are airplane tickets, gear, lodge funds for tournaments,” Radanovic stated.
“For a standard, common lifetime of a tennis participant, should you do not go to five-star accommodations, besides in India, you want between 30 and 60, 70 thousand euros. Whenever you pay for the coach, the corridor, the balls, the surface courts, the bills on the tournaments, the luggage… The determine reaches 200,000.
“For instance, I had a very nice 12 months final 12 months, I began from the a thousandth place and reached the 250th, which is actually nice. And then you definitely return to attending to 250 and also you’re at a loss once more.”
Radanovic: My dad is the sponsor
When requested how she is surviving as a professional tennis participant if she paying more cash than incomes, Radanovic revealed that her dad typically provides her €150 for essentially the most staple items. Whereas a €150 sum is not something particular, it nonetheless means quite a bit to Radanovic.
“The sponsors for now are – dad. Give me 100 euros for proteins, 50 euros for nutritional vitamins for the essential issues I would like. This isn’t any bragging, however staple items that you just, as an athlete, should use,” Radanovic stated.
To this point this season, Radanovic performed in 4 tournaments in India. After shedding within the first spherical of the ITF tournaments in Bangalore and Pune, Radanovic made the quarterfinal at an ITF occasion in Indore earlier than retiring halfway by means of her quarterfinal match as a result of an harm.
After showing in three ITF tournaments, Radanovic entered the qualifying occasion for a WTA 125 match in Mumbai. Sadly for Radanovic, she was pressured to retire her Mumbai qualifying first-round match after simply 5 video games.
After not enjoying for almost a month, Radanovic is returning to motion at this week’s ITF occasion in Helsinki, the place she can be beginning towards Laura Hietaranta within the first spherical. Of their first and lone assembly, Radanovic misplaced to Hietaranta at an ITF occasion in Trieste final 12 months.
