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Considering the Future of the ATP World Tour Finals

Nov 21st 2014

The 2014 ATP season officially came to a close last weekend with the conclusion of the World Tour Finals.  And while there was plenty of discussion about what transpired over the course of last week (or more accurately, what did not transpire), there has also been plenty of chatter concerning the future of this high-profile event.  The biggest questions facing this tournament are where and if to move it, as well as on what playing surface it should be contested.

ATP World Tour Finals

One would be hard pressed to find many people who would argue against moving the ATP World Tour Finals to a new home.  With its guarantee of a loaded, talented field, it can be used as a valuable tool for growing the sport in virtually any market.  Furthermore, it would be nice to see areas that are already growing the game or have a rich history in the sport rewarded.  Tennis has seen quite a boom in Asia these last few years and has left many in that region clamoring for the right to host a major.  Giving one of the Asian cities the opportunity to stage a prestigious event like the World Tour Finals could be a great way to recognize their efforts to grow the sport in lieu of moving one of the four majors to the area.  Additionally, South America has produced plenty of talent over the decades, but few of the big tournaments are held there.  As with Asia, the chance to serve as the home of the year-end championships could continue to spur interest in the sport on that continent and assist with generating the necessary revenue to produce future talents.

As beneficial as it would be to rotate the ATP World Tour Finals around the globe, however, the event should not be moved from London just for the sake of rotating it.  London’s O2 Arena is a spectacular venue, there is ample financial backing for the event, and there is consistently very high attendance for the tournament.  At the end of the day, the ATP is a business, and the event should not be moved unless the next host city can guarantee it can meet those three criteria. 

While mulling over where and if to move the ATP World Tour Finals, those at the ATP will also be ruminating on the question of whether or not the surface should periodically change, too.  This tends to be a more contentious topic.  Some fans and players – particularly those not fond of the indoor hard courts – would love to see the various surfaces employed on a rotating basis.  Still others insist that it should strictly remain an indoor hard court event.  There are advantages and disadvantages to both sides of the argument, but while either outcome would still likely produce stellar tennis, it is probably best to leave the indoor hard court surface as the one constant of this tournament.

Novak Djokovic

Logistically, it makes the most sense to leave the ATP World Tour Finals as an indoor hard court event.  It falls at the end of the season after the players have been playing other tournaments on indoor hard courts.  Since it is what they are used to, it lessens the chance of the players sustaining the kind of injuries that can occur when having to make a sudden change to a new surface.  Also, the players who qualify for this prestigious event have already had the opportunity to show their prowess on the outdoor hard courts, clay, and grass of the majors, so why not ask them to also exhibit their skills at such a high-profile indoor hard court event?  And lastly, having a set surface makes it easier on the host cities.  Some cities may be reluctant to take on staging the event if they know they are going to be responsible for installing new playing surfaces over the course of their tenure as host, so ensuring that only indoor hard courts will be used could entice more candidates to throw their hats into the ring.

There are definitely plenty of angles the ATP will have to take under consideration when it comes to its prized event.  The good news is that with the ATP World Tour Finals set to be staged in London next year with an option to be staged there in 2016, they have a bit of time to figure out their best course of action.  It should be interesting to see what they decide in the coming months, and no matter what the outcome of their deliberations, there is bound to still be plenty of discussion and anticipation surrounding this fan-favorite tournament.