Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur Criticizes French Open and Amazon for Excluding Women from Night Sessions
Tunisian tennis star Ons Jabeur has strongly criticized the French Open organizers and broadcaster Amazon Prime Video for consistently excluding women’s matches from the tournament’s prestigious night sessions. Her comments came after her first-round exit at Roland Garros on May 27.
It has been nearly two years since a women’s singles match was featured in the evening slot on Court Philippe-Chatrier—the last being Aryna Sabalenka versus Sloane Stephens on June 4, 2023.
The French Open schedules just one night match per day, starting no earlier than 8:15 p.m. local time, and these matches are broadcast exclusively in France on Amazon Prime Video.
“In Europe, it’s really unfortunate for women’s sports in general, not just tennis,” Jabeur said. “I don’t think the people making these decisions have daughters—because I doubt they’d want their daughters treated like this.”
She added, “It’s ironic. They don’t show women’s tennis, and then ask why people don’t watch it. Of course people watch more men’s matches—because you’re the ones broadcasting them. It all goes hand in hand.”
French Tennis Federation president Gilles Moretton defended the scheduling choices, saying during a press conference on May 26 that the “best match” is chosen for the night slot, depending on players and matchups. “Maybe we’ll have a few women’s matches at night. We’ll see,” he said.
Meanwhile, the scheduled night session on May 28 was originally set to feature Frenchman Hugo Gaston versus American Ben Shelton, before Shelton withdrew. Organizers replaced it with 10th seed Holger Rune against American Emilio Nava.
On the same day, a high-profile women’s match—reigning champion Iga Swiatek versus 2021 US Open winner Emma Raducanu—was played during the day.
The WTA had addressed this issue earlier in 2024, emphasizing the need for equal visibility. “To continue building the value of our combined product, a balanced match schedule that features both the best in men’s and women’s tennis is critical,” the women’s tour stated.
Jabeur, however, remains deeply disappointed. “It’s a shame—for the federation, and for Prime—that such a contract was made,” she said. “So many great players deserve to be on that stage. Naomi Osaka versus Paula Badosa was incredible—it should’ve been in prime time. Same for Iga and Naomi last year. Those are matches worth showcasing.”
She concluded, “I’m not sure what kind of fans [Moretton] is referring to. I’m a fan—and I would’ve watched that match.”
