Tennis star Taylor Fritz has decided to give away the prize money he earns from his first-round match from the Australian Open to help victims from the wildfires in Los Angeles.
As per BBC Sports, after defeating the Chilean qualifier Cristian Garin with a 6-2, 6-0 score to move into the third round of the Australian Open, Fritz announced that he would donate his first-round prize money of 132,000 Australian dollars (approximately £67,000).
The wildfires, which started on January 7, have claimed the lives of at least 25 individuals.
California governor Gavin Newsom has labelled the Los Angeles wildfires as the most devastating natural disaster in US history.
Fritz said, “I just want everyone to stay safe, it's insane what happened. I’m going to be donating my first round prize money to LA wildfire relief funds.”
The 27-year-old added, “It's the least I can do. Southern California is my home and LA was my home for a very long time, so I'm just doing what I can possibly do to help."
Fritz, who lost to Jannik Sinner in the US Open final last year, wrote “LA” and drew a love heart on a camera lens.
Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula and Iga Swiatek also honoured the victims of the Los Angeles wildfires.
They dedicated their first-round victories to LA and the firefighters who have been working to control the fires.
Fritz will now compete against the experienced French player Gael Monfils in the third round of the tournament.
