Ex-Wimbledon official calls for major rule change to benefit male players

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Former Wimbledon referee Andrew Jarrett has called for a major rule change at the SW19 tournament and believes men and women should both play the same number of sets since they are earning the same amount of prize money. Wimbledon is one of the most prestigious tennis tournaments in the world, with Novak Djokovic being crowned men’s champion last year and Elena Rybakina taking the women’s title.

There are 128 players in the men and women’s draws at Wimbledon, with the champions both needing to win seven matches to claim tournament victory. But the men’s tournament is played as a best-of-five-set competition, while women will only play a maximum of three sets in any match.

That means the men’s champion may have to play 14 more sets than their female counterpart by the time the tournament concludes. And Jarrett, who oversaw Wimbledon for 13 years, has offered a solution to level the playing field.

“Equality in general is something being imposed, and I think it is an area in which tennis can hold its head reasonably high,” the 65-year-old told the Daily Mail.

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“You have equal pay but the men are playing more. For it to be carried further you could play best-of-three-sets for everyone in singles up until the fourth round, then have everyone playing best-of-five-set matches from the quarter-finals onwards.”

In the past, men were controversially allowed to earn more money for their Wimbledon exploits than women. But equal prize money was eventually introduced under Jarrett’s watch in 2007. Last year, the total prize money on offer at Wimbledon was £40.4million, with Djokovic and Rybakina both walking away with a cool £2m each.

The total figure is set to increase to a whopping £44.7m this year, with the champions both in line to receive £2.35m. But the disparity in the amount of tennis played by men and women is clearly an issue that Jarrett is determined to change.

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Jarrett has been regularly seen on television screens during past Wimbledon tournaments and, up until 2019, would often come onto the court to sort out issues concerning a lack of light and weather.

Back in 2013, he faced the wrath of Andy Murray when he sanctioned Jerzy Janowicz’s request to shut the roof during the semi-finals of the tournament. Murray had just won five straight games against the Pole to win the third set but saw his momentum halted as the roof closure caused a 30-minute delay.

“It’s ridiculous,” Murray raged at the referee. “It’s not even dark. You can’t close it now, man. This is an outdoor tournament. I don’t understand these rules.”

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