House full notices, a stellar showing from a young Italian player, outstanding matches played on a refreshingly quick surface — no wonder ATP officials were delighted with their Finals event in Turin.
Rounded off with another tour de force from Novak Djokovic against Jannik Sinner, complete with an acceptance speech in the host nation’s tongue, it stood in sharp contrast to the WTA’s disastrous visit to Cancun.
As ever at this event there was also plenty of hidden action along the corridors of power, where various hierarchies were gathered for meetings trying to shape the future.
Very high on the agenda, according to well-placed sources, was the thorny question of how best to accommodate the ambitions of Saudi Arabia to invest in the sport and acquire a place on the calendar.
If anything the success of Turin after its move from London’s O2 Arena has complicated this, as it makes the widely mooted idea of moving the year-end tournament to Saudi more difficult. This is especially so with Sinner’s place in the top eight looking assured for years, and men’s tennis in Italy enjoying a wider boom.
Novak Djokovic lifts the ATP Finals trophy after beating Italy’s Jannik Sinner in the final
The Turin event has been a rousing success following its move from London’s O2 Arena
The Saudis want a Masters-level event, with an extra one of these due to be added to an already crowded schedule. Tennis recognises the reality of Saudi and its massive financial heft, but progress on where it might fit in is said to have somewhat stalled, leading to impatience among the deep-pocketed potential investors.
The concept of placing a new event in the kingdom in week one of the season has been one of many schemes floated, but in reality this is unlikely to happen. It is meeting predictable resistance both from the top players and the increasingly united Grand Slams, who rightly see it as a threat to the credibility of the Australian Open, which is anchored in its ideal spot in the second half of January.
One alternative option that has emerged is for the PIF to buy into the Miami Open, owned by management giants IMG, which has fallen from grace since its move away from Key Biscayne. This could eventually lead to it moving to the Middle East as part of a shuffled schedule.
Another factor in play is the long-held desire of the tour to create a Masters event on grass, which could have profound implications for the pre-Wimbledon Cinch Championships at Queen’s. The west London club has a staging agreement with the Lawn Tennis Association which runs until 2026. It cannot grow any bigger than its current size, which sees it full to bursting.
Recent surveys of club members have shown a level of disquiet with how big it has become, and the inconvenience of the huge tournament build visited upon them every summer.
Delivering a grass-court Masters elsewhere is not, however, currently front and centre while other issues are addressed.
Given that so many events are combined one of the main concerns at present, sources say, is the leadership of the WTA, which remains a major part of the equation. Cancun was seen by many as the final straw for chief executive Steve Simon after several years of controversies that have included the shift towards China and treatment of Ukrainian players.
Saudi Arabia have ambitions to invest in tennis and acquire a place on the calendar. Pictured here is Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, chairman of PIF
Amid strained relationships at the top of the organisation the position of Simon, now 68, is under severe threat.
The uncertainty around his position is adding to the complications in the sport’s already fractured, alphabet soup-type governance.
Meanwhile, a decision to put in place restrictions on extreme late-night play is awaiting a final seal of approval, with the hold-up being a small number of events seeking exemptions.
Turin delivered, but behind the scenes the gears of the machine continue to grind, and rarely in a smooth fashion.
Terry embracing padel mania
To Canary Wharf, where a prime piece of real estate has been bought up to build Padium, a nine-court padel facility that is the latest manifestation of how the sport is growing in the UK.
Among those playing at a Pro-Am event was Martin Lorentzon, the Swedish co-founder of Spotify, who is one of the prime investors in the project. That so much private money is going into the construction of new facilities — with at least 200 more courts expected to come on stream around the country in the next 12 months — is indicative of the gold rush feeling prevailing around the squash-tennis hybrid.
Demand for court time is undoubtedly rising (along with the hiring prices), and although it is definitely skimming players from tennis it is also pulling in those with no background in racket sports.
Among those playing were former West Ham captain Mark Noble, who took it up two months ago, and his one-time Chelsea counterpart John Terry, who is already quite useful. Another in attendance was Jos Buttler, looking more happy and relaxed than he had been at the cricket World Cup.
Chelsea legend John Terry is among a host of sporting greats to embrace the sport of padel
Buttler is clearly one of those who is annoyingly good at anything requiring hand-eye co-ordination.
The best amateur, however, was fellow England cricketer Sam Billings. This was less surprising, given he played county junior tennis for Kent and was an outstanding schoolboy player in the niche sport of Rackets. That runs in the family, as his cousin Tom has been world Rackets champion.
Prime’s time to leave
Amazon Prime have said farewell to their tennis coverage in the UK after the ATP Finals, and many among their audience will be sad to see it go.
After a sometimes ropey start they provided an extremely comprehensive service at an affordable cost, delivered for the most part professionally and enthusiastically. Having harvested subscribers from the tennis fanbase to their delivery surface, Amazon’s days in the sport were always numbered.
At the time of writing it had yet to be confirmed that Sky will be taking over, but that is expected to materialise soon enough.
Some viewers will baulk at the extra cost — and the accompanying commercials — but an upside will be the channel’s cleaner promotion of its offering, which should lead to a raising of the sport’s year-round television profile.
Amazon Prime have said farewell to their tennis coverage in the UK after the ATP Finals
The fact is that many of the less committed will have been unaware of what Amazon Prime were doing, or simply not bothered enough to find out.
Devoted fans do not like change and it seems many of the core audience were not overly impressed with Sky’s coverage of the US Open.
Yet, as Amazon showed five years ago, it is better not to rush to judgment.