"The odds are stacked against the underdog" - John Millman claims seeded and unseeded players given 'unequal' treatment on tour

Australian tennis veteran John Millman has blatantly exposed the unfair advantage that seeded players are experiencing over their unseeded counterparts on the tour.

Having persevered outside the top 100 in the rankings for the major part of his career, Millman has been an underdog in most tournaments. The Australian has faced top-seeded players in the initial rounds, much to his agony.

However, Millman took inspiration from his father's advice whenever he was up against a top seed.

"When I got older and my tennis became more serious I’d lean on his [father's] advice, especially when up against a top seed. He taught me three things that became my mantra. You start off at 0-0. Don’t play the reputation, play the man. And never leave a fight," John Millman wrote in an article for news.com.au.

However, at one point in his career, Millman realized that his father's advice was "wrong" as he felt a match between a seeded and an unseeded player "don't start" at 0-0, given the preparatory limitations for the latter.

"Graduating onto the ATP Tour I learnt a fourth lesson. He was wrong about lesson one," he continued. "You don’t start at 0-0. By having unequal opportunities in tournament preparations, the odds before even walking onto the court are stacked against the underdog – for more reasons than most realise."

The former Astana Open champion opined that seeded players get the privilege of practicing on the court before anyone else, helping them adhere more to the court conditions.

"The most significant advantage a seeded player will receive is practice court allocation," Millman stated. "Often at tournaments these players are allowed to book practice courts before anyone else, sometimes for two or three hours alone at a time."

"Not only is this advantageous to have the time on a match court but being able to knock out their practice continuously allows them to begin their recovery earlier. Get in and get out," the Aussie added.

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John Millman says unseeded players should consider themselves lucky if they even get a court at the venue for practice

John Millman at the 2023 Adelaide International 2

John Millman further lamented over the iniquity towards the unseeded players. He stated that they should consider themselves lucky if they even get a court at the venue for practice as these players are often ordered to train offsite on different court conditions.

"They should consider themselves lucky if they even get a court at the venue. Many times you are ordered offsite to practice and on a surface with a totally different court speed," Millman wrote.

John Millman last played at the 2023 Cherbourg Challenger where he lost to Titouan Droguet in the first round.