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Could contractual issues with Tennis Australia put our bid to host a Masters 1000 tournament at risk? Tennis Australia has warned the ATP Tour against scheduling a Masters 1000 tournament in Saudi Arabia, citing scheduling concerns that could be tantamount to a “breach” of contract between the two organizations, The Athletic reports, citing a letter it has reviewed.
Uh, Enterprise? What’s a Masters 1000? There are nine of them, and they’re among the biggest events in tennis, including Indian Wells, the Shanghai Open, as well as the Canadian and Italian opens. Think of them as nine of the “tent poles” of the global professional tennis circuit, then add in the four “grand slams”: The US Open, Australian Open, Roland Garros, and Wimbledon.
They’re called Masters 1000 because the top finisher takes 1k ranking points in the ATP and WTA tour standings. The top men’s and women’s player at a grand slam would take 2k points.
So what’s the issue? A tenth Masters 1000 — for which Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi, and Australia were invited to bid — would potentially be held during the first week of the 2027 tennis season, The Athletic says. Tennis Australia has an agreement — running through to 2029 — with the ATP Tour which stipulates that the first week of the season is reserved for the United Cup held in Australia and New Zealand. The United Cup is treated like a warm-up for the Aussie Open.
The problem: Hosting the Masters event in Saudi Arabia (or, by the same logic, Dubai, Doha, or Abu Dhabi) would be “clearly damaging to player preparation for a Grand Slam” as it would force players to cope with “an eight-hour time zone difference, different climactic [sic] conditions, and a 15-hour flight” between the Kingdom and Australia.
REMEMBER- PIF announced a multi-year strategic partnership with ATP Tour back in February, and have since been pushing for a Masters event in the Kingdom.
