The current US Open is full of sensations. The second week of the tournament has just begun and the four champions from previous years who were in the traditional Forbes ranking are no longer in the singles category. Remember that before the tournament, the American publication traditionally publishes a list of the highest-paid tennis players of the last 12 months. And the first three have already left the US Open in unison!
8th place. Naomi Osaka: $14.6 million ($0.6 million + $14 million)
Let’s start with Naomi Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion and two-time US Open winner. In the Forbes rankings, the Japanese tennis player ranked eighth, earning $0.6 million on the court and $14 million off it. However, this does not take into account the current tournament. In the second round of the US Open, Osaka lost to Karolina Muchova 3:6, 6:7 (5:7). For reaching the 1/32 finals, Naomi will receive $140,000.
Osaka is trying to get back into shape after pregnancy and the birth of a child. According to the athlete, this is difficult for her. “I don’t understand why everything seems almost new to me again. For me it should be as simple as breathing. But this is not true,” she wrote on social media last month.
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Due to the long period of inactivity, Osaka’s on-court earnings are significantly lower than her earnings from non-tennis activities. Her sponsors include brands such as Autograph, Beats by Dre, Etsy, Hyperice, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, Meta, Modern Health, Morinaga & Company, Nike, Panasonic, Tag Heuer, Wowow Inc, Yonex, Zico.
3rd place. Cori Gauff: $27.1 million ($7.1 million + $20 million)
Cori Gauff was the best of all the rich champions, but reaching the fourth round, i.e. the round of 16, is not exactly what the 20-year-old American, who won the tournament a year ago, was counting on. In the past 12 months, Gauff has earned $7.1 million on the court. To this must be added the $325,000 Corey will receive for the fourth round of the tournament. The American’s defeat at this stage means that she will lose at least three places in the WTA rankings and, at best, will be the sixth player in the world at the end of the tournament.
It is noteworthy that in the match against Emma Navarro, which she lost 3:6, 6:4, 3:6, Gauff committed as many as 19 double faults. “Overall I think I played at a good level. I just wasn’t careful when serving. If I were to come on the court now, I would serve about 30 times in a row,” Punto de Break quotes Corey as saying.
Off-court earnings (up to $20 million) will keep Corey on track. His sponsors include Amer Eagle Outfitters, Baker Tilly Wealth Management, Barilla, Bose, Fanatics, Head, New Balance, Rolex, UPS.
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2nd place. Novak Djokovic – $37.2 million ($12.2 million + $25 million)
The 24-time Grand Slam champion has won the US Open four times, including last year. This time Djokovic stopped in the third round. For this he earned $215,000. To this amount we must add $12.2 million – this is exactly how much Novak has earned on the court over the past 12 months.
After losing to Alexei Popyrin (4-6, 4-6, 6-2, 4-6), Djokovic admitted that he was not in the best shape for the US Open. “I arrived at a standstill both mentally and physically. I spent a lot of energy to win the Olympic gold. I had no physical problems. I just felt exhausted,” said the Serbian at a press conference.
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However, the decline – Novak won just one title this year, the Olympic one – has no effect on off-court earnings. A host of major sponsors, including Asics, Head, Hublot, Lacoste and Raiffeisen Bank International, allow the 37-year-old Djokovic to be optimistic about his future after the sport. In the past 12 months alone, Novak’s off-court earnings amounted to $25 million.
1st place. Carlos Alcaraz – $42.3 million ($10.3 million + $32 million)
The four-time major winner, who won the US Open two years ago, made a second-round exit at this tournament. And, like Osaka, he will receive $140,000 for it – a very insignificant increase considering that in the last 12 months Alcaraz has earned $10.3 million on the court, only Djokovic has more.
The Spaniard became co-author of one of the biggest sensations in the history of the entire tournament. In the match against Botik van de Zandshulp, the experts assessed the opponent’s chances at approximately 96 to 4 in favour of Carlos. However, the Dutchman did not give up a single set! Alcaraz made it clear that he was tired after the Olympics, in the final of which he lost to Djokovic. “I didn’t come here as fresh as I wanted. But I don’t want to make excuses for this. However, the schedule is really tight. I’m one of those people who needs more rest between big and important tournaments. I need to think about this. Let’s see. I feel that instead of taking steps forward, I took them backwards psychologically. I don’t know why. I had an amazing summer, I took a step forward, but I came here and everything came back.
“I’m not mentally well, I don’t know how to react to problems. I’ve had moments of ‘disconnection’. I’m still learning about myself and maybe I need more time. Maybe I’m the type of person who demands more from myself than necessary,” said Alcaraz, who lost in the second round of the US Open by 1:6, 5:7, 4:6, after the match.
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Despite the unfortunate setback, the 21-year-old Spaniard still has everything in store for him. The income from sponsorships will certainly help him to get his mind right: in terms of off-court earnings, Carlos is ahead of the rest. At 32 million dollars, not even Djokovic receives that much from advertisers. Among the young tennis player’s biggest sponsors are Babolat, BMW Group, LVMH, Nike, Rolex.
