London set to host Masters finale

London could host the end-of-season Masters Cup from 2009 as one of a set of changes being made by the ATP.
The Masters Series will be cut from nine to eight tournaments with the Cup being moved from Asia to Europe.

ATP president Etienne de Villiers said: "The Masters Cup will be called the ATP World Tour Finals and I would like it to be played in London."

De Villiers announced other changes, including punishments for players who drop out of top ranking events.

The strict new sanctions for withdrawals from ATP tournaments will be imposed from 2009, with players in the top eight elite events fined and suspended if they do not show up.

"We had 384 withdrawals last year," de Villiers said.

"There are no options for these events, it's eight of eight for the players. If you don't show up, you will be fined and suspended.

"We have to put some teeth into this - and you can guess how popular I am with the players right now."

De Villiers also said that one of the eight Masters Series events would be held in China.

Shanghai hosted the end-of-year event in 2005 and 2006 but will still stage the championship this season and next.

ATP tournaments in 2009 will also come under four categories of importance, the four grand slams, the Masters Series, 10 other selected events plus others.

And De Villiers announced that 1,000 ranking points will be awarded for each winner of an elite event.

Source - http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/6383347.stm


So my guess is that the new schedule will be something like this:
Australian Open
TMS Indian Wells
TMS Miami
TMS Monte-Carlo
TMS Rome
French Open
Wimbledon
TMS Canda
TMS Cincinnati
US Open
TMS Shanghai
TMS Madrid
Masters Cup (in Shanghai until 2008, London in 2009 and then who knows?)

The ATP confirmed a few weeks ago that China. Either Paris or Madrid will be downgraded to make way for this. Hopefully it will be Paris at the city already has a grand slam, and Spain as one of the strongest tennis nations in the world deserves a big event. One of the clay TMS events will be downgraded (probably Hamburg which isn't really as presitigious as Monte-Carlo or Rome).

I like the new changes :D I'd also like Paris to go, but isn't that one of the longest running TMS events? And Madrid just started in 2002 :huh:

It strikes me as a little odd that Masters events will have the same ranking significance as the Grand Slams. So a player who wins the Grand Slam would be no more rewarded than someone who wins four events like Indian Wells or Cincinatti...

That is ridiculous I agree. I like the present concept of grand slams awarding twice as many points as masters series events.
Regarding Madrid and Paris, yes Paris does have a lot of history and tradition. It's main problem nowadays is that it is so close datewise to Masters Cup. If you're Federer and Nadal and have played a long gruelling season, you'd want a decent rest before playing in the end of season showpiece. A lot of money is pumped into the Madrid event by high ranked officials which is why I think it will stay.

London getting the Masters CUP really doesnt seem fair to me, Lodnon hold one of the 4 majors and arguably the most prestigious of them all, the beauty of the Masters Cups has been holding it in Cities or Nations that arent always exposed to the same level of tennis first hand, if they want in in the UK location so much then why not another city like Manchester? or why not Dublin in Ireland or Edinburgh yes the Masters Cup has been held in the States but in Houston Texas not New York, and in Sydney not Melbourne I just really dont this this is fair or right at all

Good point. The big events should be as spread as out as possible. That's why I have never liked the idea of Queen's getting upgraded to a TMS. I agree that the 4 grand slam cities shouldn't be allowed to host the Masters Cup. IMO it should change venue every year. Cities like Buenos Aires, Tokyo, Moscow etc which don't host a major event should be given a chance.

What about the arena in Birmingham or would it not be able to cope with the masters cup?

They should have it in Grimsby :devil:

Yeah, sod Paris, its the Madrid hangover event anyway roflmao

Be great to have it in LOndon :D

Yeah, on the beach with the gorgeous smell of the docks in the background! :D

Seriously, it's great for Britain but I do take Ark's point that these events should be spread worlwide. Also that why London? Anyone woudl think it were the only bloody city in the UK! roflmao London had enough cash and enough tourism. Take it somwhere else that would be a more deserving beneficiary of the money generated.

yeah Blackpool :D They have robbed us of the super casino, lets have the Masters instead. We have some lovely grass courts down Stanley Park :P :P

Yeah, the Blackpool Masters has a nice ring to it! If they put it up there you can get on TV by streakign across the court! roflmao

great idea :devil:

I don't know why, but the idea cracks me up.

Imagine following the ATP Race to Grimsby for 11 months! :D

I'll make sure they get plenty of red blankets in then! :D

My local sports centre could easily host it in November. They'd need to fit the matches in between the 5-a-side league ties, and Stan the janitor running the industrial cleaner over the games hall at night, but I think it'd be a winner.

They could easily stick some benches round the side for the spectators - should be able to easily seat...oh....70 people.

roflmao

and all the participants should get a years supply of fish

roflmao

I am a Londoner, but no way should we get another big tournament. We don't deserve it and only produce one decent player every 100 years anyway. I would not give it to the UK either.

The most pressing single problem seems to be the annual mass drop-out from the Paris MS which is close to Madrid and the Season-ender. If you dropped its compulsory MS status that might ease quite a lot of problems for nearly all the players - Paris is the only city with a GS and an MS at the moment. I agree that Hamburg's MS status is difficult to justify too given its closeness to RG.

The player who has to be most careful at the moment is Fed because he reaches so many finals and so plays more matches than anyone else. He played 95 matches last year. Assuming that he keeps up his standard for a while, the current MS regime means that so long as he attends Basle (sandwiched between Madrid and Paris), he has to tank one MS tournament a year to keep up his quota of 6 MS and avoid excessive back-to-back playing. Forcing anyone who regularly reaches finals like he does to play 13 big tournaments would be ridiculous. At the moment it looks like Hamburg and Paris are unlikely to see him at all for a while and one or other of Cincinnati/Canada is likely to see an early exit/tank, probably Cincinnati as it is second and closer to the US Open.

Maybe the 2009 date has been chosen partly in the hope that the anomaly that is Fed's current dominance will be over by then..... ?