ATP must persist with Gaudenzi for bright future, says former board
member
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[March 28, 2023]
By Shrivathsa Sridhar
BENGALURU (Reuters) - The ATP must resist the urge to make changes
to its leadership and back chairman Andrea Gaudenzi for another term
that would allow the Italian to realise his vision for the men's
game, a former board member has told Reuters.
Italian Gaudenzi presented an ambitious plan to revolutionise the
sport after taking over as ATP chairman in 2020, but the COVID-19
pandemic forced sporting bodies into crisis mode and many are still
dealing with the financial implications.
Alex Inglot, who until recently served on the ATP Board and worked
with Gaudenzi and his predecessor Chris Kermode, said the Italian --
who is up for re-election this year -- had made "significant
developments" in the face of adversity.
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"Do I believe stability is critical? Not de facto," Inglot, who was
an ATP European player representative, told Reuters by phone from
Malta.
"But on the basis of what Gaudenzi envisions and what he has already
achieved on the road to that vision, I 100% believe he's the right
person for the job going forward."
Briton Inglot pointed to the ATP's announcement in November of a
record increase of $37.5 million in prize money to $217.9 million
for 2023, shortly after it said prize money on the Challenger Tour
feeder circuit would jump 60%.
Under Gaudenzi's OneVision plan aimed at improving revenue from
media and television rights, players and tournaments are guaranteed
a 50-50 share in profits from this year, he noted.
"Gaudenzi also made governance changes that were really important to
the way the board works, the balance of the board and ironing out
conflict of interest issues," Inglot said.
"ATP CEO Massimo Calvelli also drove an organisational restructure
in terms of the ethos in-house and opening up job opportunities to
the wider world."
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GROWING COLLABORATION
Gaudenzi was instrumental in creating a "T7 working group" that
included the ATP, the WTA, the four Grand Slams and the
International Tennis Federation in a bid to streamline the
governance of the sport.
The ATP and the WTA integrated marketing departments in 2021 while
the launch of the United Cup mixed team tournament and the Netflix
tennis docuseries "Break Point" were further signs of the growing
collaboration between the Tours.
The ATP announced this month that sports technology company
Sportradar was the successful bidder for its global data and betting
streaming rights for a six-year period that will begin in 2024.
Inglot said it marked a "powerful vindication" of Gaudenzi's vision
for rights aggregation.
"I don't know the exact numbers but in conversations I've had, it's
a significant increase on the previous deal," added Inglot, now
commissioner of ESL Pro League, a professional esports league.
"Gaudenzi has delivered on the betting and streaming rights. Anyone
who doubts his driving mantra and his ability to convert -- that
should be the end of the conversation.
"If you look at content, collaboration, growth, prize money and
survival in tough times..., tennis seems to be in good shape."
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru, editing by Ed Osmond)
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