In a move that had becoming increasingly inevitable over the past few months, despite the protestations of some players, ATP president Chris Kermode’s contract has not been renewed. As a result, his tenure as ATP president will come to an end. The Briton had a short playing career, but never broke into the world’s top 700. However, after a stint as a tennis coach in London and time spent working in the film and music industries, he became the tournament director at Queen’s Club in 2007.
A year later, he also took on the job of tournament director at the ATP Finals, which moved to London’s O2 Arena from Shanghai in 2008. Putting Kermode at the helm of the most prestigious tournament held under the ATP’s auspices was a clear mark of the confidence those at the top of the men’s game had in him. He also enjoyed strong relationships with a number of players, notably Great Britain’s Andy Murray. Indeed, the Scot was later to prove a firm advocate for Kermode.
In 2013, the position of ATP president fell vacant due to the untimely passing of the popular Brad Drewett. Kermode was elected to replace him with the unanimous support of the ATP’s board. His popularity amongst the players was then not in doubt, with both Murray and then president of the ATP player council Roger Federer effusive in their welcoming of Kermode. His popularity endured in the early part of his tenure as a golden age of men’s tennis continued.
Player Complaints
However, in more recent times, the relationship between Kermode and a considerable number of the players he represented has soured. That is despite significant increases to prize money at the top of the sport, with Alexander Zverev, the winner at last year’s ATP Finals taking home $2.5 million, whilst Novak Djokovic pocketed $1.36 million for his triumph at the Shanghai Masters. However, even such significant prize money hauls represented only a fraction of the ATP’s revenue.
The players thus argued that they should be entitled to a greater share, particularly as the ATP is officially a non-profit organisation. Their arguments were not without justification, as despite the money earned by those at the very top of the game, many lower-ranked players struggled to make ends meet. That was a situation exacerbated by the desire of the ITF to limit the number of full-time professional players to around 500 with their introduction of a new transition tour.
The reforms that accompanied its introduction have been almost universally unpopular and have not helped Kermode’s position. Particularly damaging to the sport’s authorities has been the ranking’s chaos caused by the removal of ATP points from a number of lower-tier ITF events. That led to a number of players all but losing their ATP ranking, whilst the ITF ranking system has been in a state of chaotic flux. The ensuing frustrations on the part of the players are thus at least understandable.
Kermode’s supporters
That is not to say Kermode was universally unpopular. Whilst Novak Djokovic, the current world #1 and chairman of the ATP player council, was less than enthusiastic about the likelihood of Kermode’s contract being renewed, others have taken a more positive view of his time as president. Both Federer and Rafael Nadal, for example, remained broadly supportive of Kermode when asked about the subject. Stan Wawrinka, meanwhile, penned a letter in defence of Kermode, believed to have been read and discussed widely by the players.
However, with the possible exception of Djokovic, the opposition to Kermode does not appear to have come from the elite of the game, but rather the middle-ranked players. Vasek Pospisil, the Canadian #4 and a member of the player council, has been one particularly outspoken critic, whilst the American duo of John Isner and Sam Querrey, who also sit on the player council, are also believed to have been against the renewal of Kermode’s contract.
Now the ATP must turn to the difficult task of finding Kermode’s successor. Justin Gimelstob might once have been an obvious front-runner, but the American’s legal trouble would now make him, at best, a highly divisive choice. Yet with the relationship with the ITF appearing to grow more fractious with each passing week, the ATP can ill-afford to remain leaderless for long. Testing times are coming for the sport and the ATP has chosen to twist rather than stick. One can only hope for their sake, it’s a gamble that pays off.
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