5 min readMay 8, 2026 09:12 PM IST 1973 was the year Vijay Amritraj notched his best-ever finish at a Major, at a Wimbledon tournament that saw the Czech clay-court savant, Jan Kodes, triumph on grass. The historical oddity took place as a result of a large-scale boycott within the men’s draw; 81 players, including 12 of the 16 seeds, skipped the tournament after the ATP, then a mere players’ union, staged a protest over a harsh ban on their No. 1-ranked player Nikola Pilic. Things went on as usual. Kodes won an event that saw the second-highest attendance up to that date. Alongside Amritraj, a 17-year-old Bjorn Borg and a 20-year-old Jimmy Connors made the last eight of a Major for the first time in their careers. 53 years later and tennis’s stakeholder bodies – splintered and protecting varied interests – face the spectre of collective action once again. World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka feels the players must boycott a Slam to have their voices heard; her male counterpart, Jannik Sinner, believes the players …