Saudi Arabia will host a brand new Masters 1000 match, the ATP has introduced.
The nation’s affect in tennis has been rising, with Saudi Arabia staging the WTA Finals, the Subsequent Gen ATP Finals and the profitable Six Kings Slam exhibition, whereas sponsorship offers by way of its Public Funding Fund embrace the ATP and WTA rankings and the WTA’s maternity programme.
Now Saudi Arabia has achieved a significant aim by being awarded a coveted spot on the Masters calendar – the highest degree of the boys’s tour.
Within the first growth of the class, Saudi Arabia will be a part of the prevailing 9 tournaments in Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo, Madrid, Rome, Canada, Cincinnati, Shanghai and Paris, with the intention being for the brand new occasion to run from 2028.
The precise level of the season the place it’ll sit stays to be decided, however ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi pinpointed February, when there are already tournaments in Doha and Dubai, as a robust chance.
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The announcement comes at a time when there may be intense scrutiny on the size of the calendar and calls for on gamers, with Tenth-ranked Holger Rune the most recent to undergo a significant damage.
Gaudenzi responded to participant complaints, telling reporters: “It is an especially complicated drawback to unravel, it is nearly you possibly can argue the unattainable drawback to unravel till there may be somebody who controls the complete stack of the calendar.
“But it’s also a hard conversation vis-a-vis players to say, ‘we play too much’, when, ultimately, in reality they choose when and where to play. I do agree that the off-season is too short.”
Lots of the complaints have been in regards to the lengthening of nearly all of Masters tournaments to two-week occasions.
Prize cash will make match profitable
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The ATP is taking a look at decreasing the overall variety of tournaments, whereas the Saudi Arabia occasion will align with Monte-Carlo in lasting just one week and it’ll not be necessary.
Nonetheless, the prize cash and different advantages on provide will nearly actually make it an occasion no eligible participant would need to skip.
Gaudenzi mentioned of the plans for the match: “They’re really amazing and I think they’re going to raise the bar in terms of both player experience and fan experience.”
The brand new occasion, which can be run by PIF firm SURJ Sports activities Investments, will even be a part of the opposite Masters tournaments as a shareholder in ATP Media, the Tour’s international broadcast and media arm.
Gaudenzi added: “This is a proud moment for us and the result of a journey that’s been years in the making.
“Saudi Arabia has proven a real dedication to tennis – not simply on the skilled degree, but additionally in rising the sport extra broadly in any respect ranges.”
Hall of Famers Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova have been among the critics of the sport’s ties to Saudi Arabia because of concerns about LGBTQ+ and women’s rights there.
Danny Townsend, the CEO of SURJ Sports activities Funding, a PIF firm, wouldn’t rule out that the brand new match might ultimately be a part of the rising ranks of two-week, joint occasions with each ladies and men.
“There are benefits from having both men and women playing at the same time. I know there’s uplifts in ticket sales, a bunch of other commercial elements that we would certainly want to better benefit from,” Townsend mentioned. “But that’s all in the future. We’d certainly never say never and explore if it became an option.”
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