As Maya Joint dazzled with a dream debut at the US Open on Monday, her freshman classmates at the University of Texas in Austin were attending their first psychology lectures for the year, a world away from the conflict the Australian now faces
The 18-year-old, who will play former US Open finalist Madison Keys in the second round after defeating Laura Siegemund 6-4 7-5 on Monday, is planning to join them soon but has more pressing priorities in New York and potentially a massive decision to make.
By virtue of highly-contentious rules enforced by the NCAA which runs the American college system, Joint may yet have to forfeit the massive windfall that comes with making the second round of the US Open.
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The right-hander will pocket almost $207,000 regardless of how she fares against Madison Keys, a former US Open finalist, on Wednesday.
But current NCAA rules, which are the subject of multiple legal challenges from past student athletes, stipulate that athletes can receive US$10,000 in prize money and any further winnings beyond can only be used to pay expenses.
.Joint’s mother is on the job and a friend of hers is among those who have taken the NCAA to court in what the 18-year-old concedes is a complex situation.
In a promising start for the Australian women’s contingent, Joint was joined in the second round by former US Open quarterfinalist Ajla Tomljanovic, who defeated Ann Li 6-4 6-4 in a confidence boosting win.
Joint played with poise for much of her grand slam debut against Siegemund, a former French Open quarterfinalist.
After breaking late in the first set, she dashed to a 5-0 lead in the second, only for the nerves to kick in as she tried to close out her first grand slam match. To her credit, after a match point went begging at 5-4, she rallied to finish off in style in an extremely promising debut.
“I kind of thought, ‘Oh my God. I might win this.’ And then I clammed up. My legs kind of stopped working and my feet stopped moving,” she said.
“I got pretty nervous. I’m really glad I was able to get it done at the end.”
As brilliant as it was for Joint to win on debut, her commitment to a scholarship with the Texas Longhorns could come at a significant cost given the contentious NCAA rules that prohibit players from receiving prize money.
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Those rules are under legal challenge from athletes, including tennis players, who have had to forfeit potentially life-changing sums of money in order to comply with eligibility restrictions.
Joint, who has risen steadily through the ranks and stands to earn more than $200,000 for reaching the second round of the US Open, feels she can use the prize money for expenses.
“There are different rules for college, so you can take the money from the tournament, but you have to make expenses to the end of the year, so it is different from amateur to college,” she said.
“It is very complicated. My mum looks at it, and then the Texas Compliance Office helps me with that. And one of my friends, Reece Brantmeier, she has been through all of that, so she helps me.”
But there is conjecture surrounding that and Brantmeier is helping lead the charge when it comes to challenging the current status quo.
USA Today reported in March that Brantmeier, a former top player in North Carolina, was suing the NCAA over the rules that restrict college athletes from pocketing prize money.
“While Brantmeier’s Prize Money pales in comparison to the pay-for-play amounts received by many student-athletes in profit generating sports, these amounts are even more critical to athletes in non-revenue, Individual Sports where professional opportunities to earn compensation after college may be fleeting and where the highest and most-prestigious levels of competition are open to student-athletes,” the lawsuit states.
Fiona Crawley, who was the top-ranked collegiate player in 2023, forfeited more than $120,000 a year ago to ensure she finished her degree and said it was difficult to stomach.
“I would never take the money and never risk my eligibility, but I worked my butt of this week and it seems unreal that there are football and basketball players making millions in NIL deals and I can’t take that money that I worked so hard for,” she said.
Joint, whose father Michael is a Detroit-based squash professional who grew up in Melbourne, is not alone at this US Open with American wildcard entrant Matthew Forbes in a similar boat. He is committed to attending university in Michigan.
The right-hander, who has risen impressively up the rankings in lower-tier professional tournaments, is ranked 135 and is shaping as one of Australia’s brightest prospects.
But she is determined to progress with college and is hopeful the experience will bolster her professional aspirations.
“I decided a long time ago that I wanted to go to college,” she said.
“I wasn’t really expecting to this far, but if I go to college, I get my scholarship spot. If I do decide to go professional, I can always come back on scholarships, which is a big, big deal.”
Joint, who spent her childhood in Michigan and said she played tennis instead of squash because there were courts closer to the family home, has watched Keys play for years.
She was 11-year-old when the hard-hitting American was beaten by Sloane Stephens in the decider in New York in 2017 and is looking forward to a show court outing on Wednesday.
“I have no pressure. I’ve seen Madison play multiple times on television, but obviously I have never played against her, so I am excited,” she said.
Source Agencies
