When Wimbledon begins, two of the biggest storylines will center around Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic.
The two GOATs of tennis have won a combined 47 Grand Slam singles titles and will bid for history at this year’s tournament.
Williams, 44, will make her return to competitive singles for the first time since the 2022 U.S. Open. Should she pull the improbable and win the tournament, she would tied Margaret Court with her 24th major title.
Djokovic, 39, is bidding for a record 25 Grand Slam title, which would move him one past Court.
Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek are the defending singles champions.
Amid pressure from players, Wimbledon recently announced 20% increases in total prize money and for the singles champions, who will earn $4.8 million each at the grass-court Grand Slam.
The total prize money including player per diems will be $85.8 million, described as “by far” the biggest annual increase in the tournament’s history.
“I would hope the players would welcome it. It’s a significant amount of money,” All England Club chair Deborah Jevans said at a press conference.
“We’ve demonstrated that we’ve looked at every round, including qualifying. My hope is that the players do recognize what a significant increase that this is.”
Here is how the prize money for Wimbledon breaks down:
Winner: $4,830,756
Runner-up: $2,415,378
Semifinal: $1,207,689
Quarterfinal: $644,101
Round 4: $402,563
Round 3: $248,247
Round 2: $169,076
Round 1: $107,350
Qualifying 3rd round: $67,094
Qualifying 2nd round: $42,940
Qualifying 1st round: $26,838
Read the full article here