By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Sunday, April 28, 2024
The Premium Tour could radically reform the pro circuit into one combined Tour.
Daniil Medvedev has seen some proposals for the Premium tour and has mixed emotions about it.
More: WTA Finals Heading to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Once concept of the Premium Tour, would create a combined ATP-WTA Tour featuring the world's Top 64-ranked men and women competing at the four Grand Slams and about 10 other combined 1000-level events, the BBC's Russell Fuller reports.
Under that model, current Tour 500 and 250-level events would become part of The Contender Tour for players ranked below the Top 64. The best players of The Contenders Tour would compete at a year-end event for promotion to The Premium Tour.
Critics say the plan could eradicate 500 and 250-level tournaments by removing stars from those events making a much tougher task for those tournaments to sell sponsorships and tickets.
Asked his reaction in Madrid, Medvedev offered mixed emotions.
On the plus side, Medvedev believes a streamlined tennis tour would be much easier for fans to follow and potentially grow the game.
On the negative side, Medvedev is not a fan of the Premium Tour plan to play a Masters 1000 event in in Saudi Arabia in January prior to the Australian Open. If a Saudi 1000 was staged in February out of deference to the Australian summer season, it would potentially jeopardize traditional European indoor events like Rotterdam.
"Here I kind of feel like I know the details. I think, first of all, I think that one player, even like me, even like Rafa or Novak or Roger, cannot decide it," Medvedev told the media in Madrid. "It's going to be some other guys deciding, you know, in a way where tennis goes. I just hope they're going to make it for the best, which is more fans, more people who like tennis, easier to follow and stuff like this.
"Because in a way I agree that even myself, after Australian Open when I'm at home, sometimes it's not easy to follow when one tournament is Montpellier indoor hard courts and then there is Cordoba outdoor hard courts. Sometimes I'm, like, who won this tournament? Then I see, like, just don't follow like the tournament itself."
Still, the thought of marginalizing and potentially cannibalizing 250 and 500-level tournaments that offer added jobs to players and opportunity for fans to see world-class tennis at lower ticket prices than Grand Slams, must be factored into a decision says Medvedev.
The 2021 US Open champion said whatever decision tennis takes inevitably some players will like it and some won't.
"I think tennis could do better in some aspects, but then, you know, regarding Premium Tour or Saudi first week February, I just hope the decision is going to be the best for tennis," Medvedev said. "Because you have 100 players, 50 are going to be happy; 50 are not going to be happy.
"Me, myself, I just want to spend New Year's Eve because it's very important in Russia at home, so I hope I don't have to play like 27th December. But let's see how it goes. I just hope the best for tennis, best for players, for fans, just everybody to enjoy tennis. I think it's already the case but we can do even better."
Photo credit: Matthew Calvis/Getty