Tennis player Aslan Karatsev of Russia was ranked 114th in the world last week, and he’d never played in the main draw of a Grand Slam tournament. He’s now one of the last four men’s singles players left and will play world No. 1 Novak Djokovic for a chance to play in the finals.
He’s also guaranteed to earn $A850,000 ($US660,000) for making it to the semifinals.
Prior to last week, the 27-year-old had earned $618,354 his entire career — from both singles and doubles wins.
“It’s amazing that I reached the semi-finals from qualifying,” he said, adding, “I’m just trying to enjoy the moment and not think about winning too much.
Aslan turned pro in 2013 and played Challenger and Futures tournaments. Last year MarketWatch wrote about how difficult it can be to make it from those tournaments to the main draw of a Grand Slam like the Australian Open. See: We followed the No. 1,700-ranked tennis player in the world to get an inside look at tennis’ minor leagues
If Karatsev keeps his dream-like tournament going and defeats Djokovic, he’ll earn $A1.5 million. And if he wins the tournament, he’ll receive $A2.75 million.
At this year’s tournament, the prize money is being distributed differently last at last year’s. To help lower-ranked players earn more after many professional tournaments were cancelled in 2020, prize money was increased for early round participants and decreased for players who make it to the later rounds. The thinking being that the higher-ranked players make a lot more money and need it less.
For example, in 2021 the men’s and women’s singles winners will receive $A2.75 million, but in 2020 they received $A4.1 million — similarly, players who lose in the first round this year received $A100,000, and they received $A75,000 last year. See the total prize money comparison here.
Karatsev is the first man in the Open Era, which began in 1968, to make it to the semifinals of his first main draw appearance at a Grand Slam.
