Andrea Gaudenzi is, today, the visible face of a ATP which has found in recent months an enormous amount of challenge as the leading organization in men’s tennis. The former Italian player continues to work towards the growth of our sport, trying to implement some formulas that create distrust and admiration in equal parts. With an ATP that little by little recovers normality after two years affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the head of the players’ association responded to some questions in an interview with the German portal SPOX, among which are a plan for future that prioritizes the Masters 1000, an update on research on Alexander Zverev and your opinion about the PTPA.
His journey in the ATP so far and his strategic plan for the future
“This sport has seen more change in the last two years than in the last twenty. Our players, tournaments and partners have shown great agility and resilience in a totally unpredictable situation. In addition, we have worked more closely with the WTA on some marketing initiatives, also together with the other big organizations, through the launch of the T7 working group, made up of the four Grand Slams, the ITF, the WTA and the ATP. All this makes me very optimistic: our sport can reach great things in the future if we all continue to work together.
Regarding our strategic plan, the first phase focuses on the ATP itself, based on some principles. At the top priority are trust and transparency. The ATP is an association between the players and the tournaments. For this partnership to grow, both sides must have trust. That we are going to bring visibility into financial data means that tournaments are going to share audit reports with players, and then bring together the interests of both parties in a pioneering profit sharing model.”
Increased importance of major ATP events (Masters 1000)
“The next point in our plan is to strengthen our biggest events. We will try to achieve this through added tournament days, as well as stability that we will ensure with long-term franchise agreements, with the aim of incentivizing new investments. These tournaments are our biggest events on the circuit, the events that generate the most interest from fans. We believe that by strengthening their position, we can take the ecosystem of the entire circuit to the next level. If we make the cake bigger In general, it will be much easier to be able to talk about the redistribution of money to the lower levels.”
Is a unification between ATP, WTA, ITF and Grand Slams possible?
“In the short to medium term future, my greatest wish would be for tennis to evolve towards shared governance and leadership, where seven organizations work together to make decisions and move our sport forward. Right now, that decision-making process is completely fragmented, which causes inefficiency. It is obvious that, when it comes to comparing ourselves with other sports, leagues and giants of streaming entertainment, music or video games, we have a great disadvantage there. Despite this I must say that over the last 24 months we have already taken some steps that are really hopeful, so I have faith that the model we are presenting is plausible and capable of modernizing our sport.”
Ways to make tennis more attractive to younger generations
“We look at what Netflix and Formula 1 have achieved through Drive to Survive. That’s why we’re very excited to collaborate with Netflix on a tennis docuseries, alongside the WTA and the Grand Slams. The launch will be in the year tennis has so many bright personalities and so many great rivals, so many stories to tell… I’ll be happy if we can attract new fans with this formula and through this content.”
Djokovic, not yet vaccinated
“My wish is to see Novak healthy and happy on tour. As one of our great champions, he has a huge impact in every event he plays. Right now it is a shame that his vaccination status prevents him from being in certain tournaments. For On our part, the only thing we can do is continue to recommend vaccination to all our players.
The relationship with Djokovic and the PTPA
“I have always made it very clear that tennis needs unity, not fragmentation. It is simply the biggest source of inefficiency – the key to unleashing the full potential of our sport is to resolve this issue. Our views may differ, but We will do everything possible to ensure that tennis grows and to create a healthy ecosystem for the players. We remain committed to our vision to achieve this, and the best way to do it is with a united front, under the umbrella of the structure of the ATP. However, we are open to dialogue at all times.”
The investigation of the ATP for the complaint of gender violence against Zverev
“The investigation is ongoing. We have hired an independent third party with experience in this matter to assist us in the investigation process. I cannot give details of the investigation as of today, but I can say that we will give much more information once the investigation is complete. I can also say that this is all new territory for us as an organization. It has made us see that we have to catch up in several areas and do much more in the future. I am happy, because the year Last year we did a very detailed review of safety and security policies on tour. As a result, we have received a series of recommendations to ensure that all youth and adults involved in professional tennis are safe and protected from abuse. Continue with these recommendations will be one of our great focuses in the coming months and years”.
