And then there were two…
The ATP has narrowed its search for a Board of Directors member to replace recently departed Justin Gimelstob to two men—Nicolas Lapentti and Weller Evans. The ATP Player Council held a vote today in Rome, narrowing the prospective field from 15 original candidates to two men.
The ATP says it narrowed the number from a short list of six and plans to make its final decision in a vote to be held during Wimbledon.
It has been a complicated process. Gimelstob resigned after pleading no contest in an assault case which occurred on October 31, 2018. The board clearly liked the work he had done on behalf of the players and deliberated for quite some time after news of Gimelstob’s case became known and public pressure mounted.
Finally a public statement by Stan Wawrinka seemed to tip the scales that led to Gimelstob’s reservation several weeks ago. Since then many have expressed desire to be given consideration but a large list of 15 was whittled to six much to the chagrin of American Tim Mayotte, who claims he wasn’t given a chance to be heard by the voting council.
To be fair, the council is under no obligation to consider all applicants and must look out for the right man to represent their interests against the tournaments.
Though Federer and Nadal have mostly remained silent on the issue (neither is in the council, which is headed by Novak Djokovic), Nadal has called for a Spanish speaking leader, which he says would help the many Latin American and Spanish players stay better informed on the issues.
It is still not known if Chris Kermode, the outgoing CEO who the Board voted not to retain the services of when Gimelstob was still present in March, will be given a chance to stay in the position.
He has many supporters among the players.
Lapentti or Evans will likely have a big say in what happens to Kermode, but for now the main question remains: Will it be Lapentti or Evans who rises to the Board seat?
Stay tuned…