How Shanghai Masters slots into ATP Tour’s vision for the future

ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi has spoken about the key role the Masters series events play in the elite’s tour’s strategy for the growth of the sport.

Gaudenzi feels that the growth of the Shanghai event is an example of what the tour wants to achieve.

He wants to see the gap between the Grand Slams and the Masters events to be closed as much as possible.

The ATP chair believes the expansion of Shanghai to a 12-day tournament shows their commitment to that cause.

“We really believe in the growth of the Masters,” Gaudenzi told a press conference in China.

“The Masters are our premium product. It is mandatory tournaments where all the top players have to participate. So it’s really the stronger premium product of the ATP.

“I think having tournaments like Shanghai elevated to two weeks, as well Madrid, Rome, and we’re going to also upgrade Canada and Cincinnati in 2025, completely raises the standards and the level of our tour tournaments.

“And Shanghai has already been leading that process in the last few years. I mean, the investment that we see from an infrastructure standpoint and how they treat the players, the player services, the fan zone, the entire player and fan experience is really moving into a different level, which is the main goal of our plan, obviously.

“We’ve got the four Grand Slams as the pinnacle of our sport, but we really also need to elevate our Masters. I think especially Shanghai is doing a great job, and more to come in the future.”

Gaudenzi has been impressed by Shanghai’s efforts to accommodate the tournament and make players feel comfortable.

He was also thrilled to see the Shanghai Masters return during the Golden Week public holidays in China.

“We spoke to many players, and they’re really, really happy because there have been many, many improvements on the site, especially on the player areas, but also on the fans area,” Guadenzi said.

“It’s obviously been a very difficult three years for Shanghai, I mean, for the entire world, but specifically for Shanghai.

I think the new comeback is very positive, not only because we upgraded the tournament, it’s now two weeks and one week falls under the Golden Week, which is a great holiday here, but also because the Chinese players are a lot stronger today. We have two players in the main draw, of course.

So it’s really a good trend outlook for the future having a much better tournament, a bigger and stronger one, also supported by strong Chinese players. I think it’s a great combination.”

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