The fantasy of the Top 100: between financial security and accomplishment

The Top 100 is a very closed circle where member players can boast of making a living from tennis.

© AFP

Clément Gehl

le 27/11/2025 à 14h40

1 min to read

Millman

The Top 100 is a milestone in a career that can make many players dream. This status allows access to the Grand Slams, tournaments where the prize money is substantial, even for a first-round loss.

The Top 100 at all costs

Reaching this level requires real sacrifices for the players, which sometimes leave lasting effects. In an interview given to the media ABC, John Millman, former world number 33, revealed that he had questioned his future in tennis in 2014 after a shoulder surgery that kept him off the courts for 11 months.

He was on the verge of the Top 100 in 2013 and this injury had dashed his short-term hopes. He stated: "With these injuries, you have to start all over. It's tough. It's tough financially. It's tough physically. It's tough mentally. But you do it.

And you go through all these rehabilitation trials, you do all that for something like that (the Top 100, which he managed to enter upon his return). Everything becomes a bit more rewarding." On the financial side, the Australian had worked in an office during his injury, like an ordinary person, a "9-to-5" as he said.

Find the full investigation

The full investigation "Struggles with injuries and lack of money: the double penalty for tennis players far from the Top 100 stars" will be available the weekend of November 29-30.