Wimbledon ace lived off noodles and had just £146 after maxing out credit cards

Daily Mirror

2 days ago

Taro Daniel is one of many who failed to get through the Wimbledon qualifying rounds this year, and the Japanese player has opened up on the financial struggles of being outside the world's top 100
Taro Daniel has shed light on the financial struggles of being outside the world's top 100. Best known for his victory over Andy Murray in the second round of the Australian Open three years ago, Daniel was one of many hopefuls who failed to make it through the qualifying rounds at Wimbledon.
Despite his best efforts, the 32-year-old was dumped out at the second round of preliminaries, losing 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 to Frenchman Titouan Droguet. Discussing his money worries, Daniel has been forced to be frugal with his earnings due to the high costs around travel, coaching and physiotherapy.
‌
After earning £150,000 for reaching the third round in Melbourne, the tennis ace spent years losing money each week, having to sacrifice things he enjoyed to save a bit of cash.
‌
"In 2017, after an early exit at the French Open, I had $200 (£146) in my account," he admitted. "I survived on instant noodles and skipped tournaments because I couldn't afford flights."
Speaking to the Financial Times, Daniel said: "When I was younger, I even wouldn't get the avocado on my Chipotle order because it's like three dollars more. When you try to save too much it ends up impacting people's games negatively."
Since the start of 2025, Daniel has won just over £135,000 in prize money. However, various expenses have significantly reduced that amount, leaving him with a hefty credit card bill each month to cover essential costs.
"First of all, you're earning all of this money from foreign countries so they're going to take all the withholding taxes," Daniel said. "Tournaments cover your hotel room, but they don't cover your coach's hotel room.
"My credit card statement, it's at least $20,000 (£14,702) a month on just operational expenses of hotel, food, flights and not including the salaries I pay to my team.
‌
"As a tennis player, you're like a small company but having all your employees travelling all the time. [It's] at least $100,000 (£73,518) per season for your basic level, not super experienced coach.
"10 years ago, when I started, a lot of players would travel alone because the standards were not as high. Now, it would be very rare for someone to travel alone to a Grand Slam, for example.
‌
"Everyone has a coach or trainer. They're probably right on the red-black line. Even in a Slam, you're not necessarily making money."
Daniel was eyeing a significant prize pot at Wimbledon, with first-round players earning £66,000, second-rounders bringing in £99,000 and making it to the third round boosting earnings to £152,000.
The winner of the entire tournament will take home a whopping £3million – the largest sum in Grand Slam history.
But unfortunately, the Japanese talent will have to struggle through some more tough months to get his hands on any life-changing cash.