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Tennis could soon follow in the footsteps of other successful sports as rumours swirl over a super tour involving the four Grand Slams – including Wimbledon – and the Masters 1000 tournaments. It\u2019s not the first time the sport has tried to repackage itself, with previous talks over an ATP-WTA merger. And the executive director of the Professional Tennis Players Association exclusively told Express Sport that following a Premier League model could be the answer to help the sport grow while keeping lower-ranked players in the conversation.<\/p>\n
Conversations about reforms in the tennis world have been rife in recent years. Going back to 2020, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal started a conversation on X (formerly known as Twitter) to suggest that the two tours merged. There were new reports earlier this year that the ATP and WTA were holding meetings about doing exactly that. And rumours of a new super tour have recently come to the forefront.<\/p>\n
According to The Athletic, the four Grand Slams and the nine Masters 1000 events – which could add a 10th tournament in Saudi Arabia – are in talks to create their own circuit. It would leave the ATP and WTA to control the 500 and 250 events, resulting in some concern that it could leave the lower-ranked players behind. Those who rely on smaller tournaments to win matches and earn ranking points may not be able to survive in a 14-event super tour.<\/p>\n
But PTPA executive director Ahmad Nassar believes that any changes could instead serve as an opportunity for tennis to follow a Premier League model, with the top end boosting the lower tiers of the sport. \u201cIt is certainly something we are keenly interested in doing some more work around to see what\u2019s possible. The details will absolutely matter,\u201d Nassar exclusively told Express Sport.<\/p>\n
Click here to join our WhatsApp community to be the first to receive breaking and exclusive tennis news.<\/strong><\/p>\n Just in <\/strong> Rafael Nadal comeback tournament announced as Spaniard eyes Australian Open[LATEST] <\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI think the good news is the broader point that we have made for as long as we have existed is that the status quo is unacceptable. The way tennis is fragmented, the way the revenues aren\u2019t maximised, the way the schedule is a mess. All of these things are just not acceptable and not becoming of a global sport and not becoming of professional athletes who are the best in the world at what they do.\u201d<\/p>\n The PTPA – co-founded by Novak Djokovic and Vasek Pospisil in 2020 – prides itself on representing all tennis players, including those who are much lower-ranked and may usually be an afterthought. And Nassar thought a Premier League-style system with promotions and relegations could have a successful trickle-down effect.<\/p>\n He continued: \u201cI think this is a unique, frankly generational opportunity, whether it\u2019s what was reported [the super tour with Slams and Masters] or any of these other options, to fundamentally reform the top end of tennis. Similar to the creation of the EPL. And then that can elevate the entire sport because you\u2019re going to care. You still need a pipeline, how do younger players progress? How do injured players or players who, for whatever reason aren\u2019t playing the way they were playing before, how do they round back into form?<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/72\/590x\/secondary\/5095287.jpg?r=1701446196676\")
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