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The Australian Open would be one tournament on a premium tour in a proposed plan for tennis to replicate sports like Formula 1.<\/p>\n
In what would be the calendar\u2019s biggest shake-up in decades, the four grand slams \u2013 the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open \u2013 would partner with at least 10 other of the sport\u2019s largest tournaments to create a premium tour for elite players.<\/p>\n
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The Australian Open could become one event on a premium tour.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>AP<\/cite><\/p>\n As first reported in The Athletic<\/em>, the four majors are attempting to forge a partnership to revamp the tour, which would take pressure off players due to playing demands, make the sport easier to follow for fans, and most importantly, head off a breakaway tour such as professional golf has experienced with the setting up of LIV Golf.<\/p>\n According to The Athletic,<\/em> the idea is yet to be formally tabled with the Women\u2019s Tennis Association (WTA) or the men\u2019s Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), but the intention is to have a proposal ready when the Australian Open kicks off in January.<\/p>\n \u201cWe all know that premium drives the business,\u201d WTA chief executive Steve Simon told The Athletic<\/em>.<\/p>\n Tennis Australia were contacted about the proposal on Wednesday but declined to comment.<\/p>\n Rafael Nadal competing at the United Cup earlier this year.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>AP<\/cite><\/p>\n A premium tour could also protect the current schedule of lead-in events to the Australian Open by limiting changes to the calendar.<\/p>\n The ATP and WTA have discussed a top-tier tournament being held in Saudi Arabia in January 2025 in the lead-up to the Melbourne Park event. If this was to become part of the schedule it would severely damage Australia\u2019s current Open lead-in as the money on offer and the travel would be far more attractive to the world\u2019s top players.<\/p>\n Events such as the United Cup, which is held in Sydney and Perth, the Adelaide International and Hobart International, which are held in December and January and attract top-tier players like Rafael Nadal, Iga Swiatek and Stefanos Tsitsipas, would suffer most from a rival event in Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n Some of the sport\u2019s largest tournaments outside the grand slams, such as Masters and 1000 events like Indian Wells, Madrid and Rome, could be included in a new premium tour. A number of events extended their schedule in 2023 from one week to 12 days, which closer reflects the two-week format of the majors.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n