Murray, Medvedev Share Views on ATP, PIF Partnership

By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Thursday, February 29, 2024

Stars shared different views on the brand new partnership between the ATP and Public Funding Fund..  The Saudi-sponsored Public Funding Fund and ATP introduced a multi-year partnership pact yesterday. 

Extra: James Blake Q&A

Extra: Richard Evans Q&A

A main a part of partnership sees the PIF turning into the official naming companion of the ATP Rankings, celebrating gamers’ jprogress throughout the season. The title change is obvious on the brand new PIF ATP Rankings web page.

The Yr-Finish world No. 1, offered by PIF, shall be topped on the Nitto ATP Finals which can happen in Turin, Italy till 2025.

Defending Dubai champion Daniil Medvedev is optimistic the brand new partnership will infuse new cash into tennis which may help develop the sport.

“I believe that is good for tennis,” Medvedev instructed the media in Dubai. “It has nothing to do with Saudi, to be trustworthy, as a result of we love our sport.

“The extra money we will entice from totally different corporations or stuff like this, the extra consideration, PR, we will convey. As you mentioned, it’ll be larger than simply sponsorship.

“I believe if we will make tennis larger as a sport, extra attention-grabbing for folks, have extra protection, simply on the whole extra folks will know tennis, who tennis gamers are. Generally perhaps you need to be much less well-known (smiling). However yeah, I believe it’ll be good.”

Through the summer time of 2022, the PGA Tour introduced its plan to merge with Saudi-sponsored LIV Golf. It is the newest sports activities enterprise the Public Funding Fund, the Saudi sovereign wealth fund, has tapped in strikes critics name “sport washing”—an try and obscure Saudi Arabia’s human rights violations and connection to the 9/11 terrorist assaults with excessive profile sporting investments.

Human Dignity Belief, a company that “makes use of the legislation to defend the rights of LGBT folks globally,” has condemned Saudi Arabia for “criminalizing same-sex sexual exercise between males and between girls.”

“Because of the opacity of Saudi Arabia legislation enforcement, it’s not doable to offer correct estimates of the variety of arrests, prosecutions, and executions [of gay people],” Human Dignity Belief mentioned in an announcement. “There have been constant reviews of discrimination and violence being dedicated in opposition to LGBT folks in recent times, together with homicide, assault, harassment, and the denial of primary rights and companies.”

Requested his view of the brand new pact, former world No. 1 Andy Murray says he is undecided precisely how the PIF funding will form the game, however advocates extra money being utilized towards grass-roots progress of tennis to get children into the game.

“I don’t know precisely what it means by sponsoring the occasions,” Murray instructed the media in Dubai. “I don’t know what that can seem like.

“One among my issues is clearly truly extra in regards to the funding in decrease ranges of the sport and the grassroots of the game. I believe that’s extraordinarily vital.”

In a press launch asserting the partnership, the ATP and PIF touted their shared purpose to “collaborate to raise the long-term way forward for tennis. PIF will actively contribute to ATP’s OneVision Strategic Plan which focuses on driving unity, enhancing fan experiences and leveraging scalable progress alternatives throughout the game.”

“Our strategic partnership with PIF marks a serious second for tennis,” Massimo Calvelli, ATP CEO, mentioned “It is a shared dedication to propel the way forward for the game.

“With PIF’s dedication to the following era – fostering innovation and creating alternatives for all – the stage is ready for a transformative new interval of progress.”

Picture credit score: Andy Cheung/Getty