Tennis chiefs risk angering players by adding Saudi Masters event to calendar
The ATP is to add a new Masters 1000 event in Saudi Arabia despite complaints from some top tennis players that the calendar is already too congested.
The Saudi Masters event could become a fixture on the men’s elite tour as soon as 2028, with February earmarked as the most likely window but not yet confirmed.
It comes amid uncertainty over the future of the pro tennis calendar, with players at loggerheads with tours and Grand Slam organisers over wide-ranging reforms.
“It’s an extremely complex problem to solve – it’s almost, you could argue, the impossible problem to solve until there is someone who controls the full stack of the calendar,” said ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi.
“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.”
A players’ association co-founded by Novak Djokovic is bringing a lawsuit against the ATP and WTA tours, Grand Slams and International Tennis Federation over alleged anti-competitive practices, with the schedule among its complaints.
Separately, top players including Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka are understood to be unhappy with the Grand Slams about a lack of progress over welfare, prize money and consultation reforms.
Saudi Arabia expands presence in tennis – again
The Saudi Masters will only last for one week but is likely to offer a level of prize money that makes it difficult for the sport’s biggest names to turn down.
A collaboration between the country’s Public Investment Fund, its sports arm Surj and the ATP, it is just the latest example of Saudi Arabia’s ambitions in tennis.
It already hosts the end-of-season WTA Finals, the Next-Gen ATP Finals and the big-money exhibition Six Kings Slam, while PIF also sponsors the ATP and WTA rankings.
The first expansion of the Masters series in its 35-year history, the Saudi tournament will join events in Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo, Madrid, Rome, Canada, Cincinnati, Shanghai and Paris as the most prestigious tournaments outside of the four Slams.
“This is a proud moment for us and the result of a journey that’s been years in the making,” said Gaudenzi.
“Saudi Arabia has shown a genuine commitment to tennis – not just at the professional level, but also in growing the game more broadly at all levels.”