"A Gulf swing through the month of February/March would be fantastic" - Tennis calendar set for re-shape with Saudi Masters at the forefront of change

The imminent introduction to the Saudi Masters in 2028 has raised a lot of eyebrows in the tennis community. While it may not be universally loved by all, SURJ Sports Investment CEO Danny Townsend believed that it was a golden opportunity to continue the spread of tennis in the area.

The Aussie stated his ambition to implement a 'Gulf Swing' lasting from February-March with the Saudi Masters firmly involved. While Saudi Arabia also hosts the WTA Finals and the lucrative Six Kings Slam, this is the next opportunity for them to grow the sport in that part of the world.

In an interview with The National, Townsend offered two reasons why PIF opted for gaining a Masters 1000 event in Saudi Arabia. "When you're investing in sports IP [intellectual property], you want to invest in assets that have had a history of growth," he stated. "When you look at the Masters 1000 licenses over time, they've continued to grow in enterprise value. So first and foremost, as an investment, the return profile was clear that if we could secure one, it would be a good investment."

"Secondly, when you look at our mandate at SURJ more broadly and how we use our investment assets to drive sustainable growth in the sports sector, having an owned tennis tournament as opposed to a rented one would enable us to do a couple of things," he continued. "One, it would enable us to invest in infrastructure that could host tennis tournaments in perpetuity, which you really can't do when you rent an asset. And two, it allows you to build a tennis economy around an asset that you also own in perpetuity, whether that be development pathways, coaching pathways, elite development, various other things."

The Saudi Masters will not be the only tennis event held throughout the year in the Middle East. The Qatar Open and Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships have been regulars on the calendar. This gives a chance for the upcoming event to learn from them while adding to the highly rated tennis already being showcased in the area. It will make the sport grow to insurmountable heights, something Townsend is working on.

"We speak to the various stakeholders across those tournaments regularly on a multitude of different sport investments that we all make. We're well in tune to them all," Townsend announced. "What we are trying to do more broadly is work together as a Gulf region to collectively drive our influence over the global sporting landscape. This swing, if we can make it work, which I'm sure we can, a Gulf swing through the month of February/March would be fantastic. To have all the best men's and women's tennis players camped out in our part of the world for four to five weeks, I think it would be fantastic for tennis in the region."

When asked about the reaction to how the WTA Finals has been received, Townsend said: "It's been a fantastic addition to the sporting calendar in Saudi Arabia. To have the best women's tennis talent in the world here to inspire young Saudi female and male tennis players is important. Part of the reason why we are collectively investing in sport, whether that be through owned assets or rented assets, is to inspire the youth of the kingdom to want to pick up a tennis racquet and learn to play tennis.

"It's very hard to change anyone's behaviour without some sort of inflection point or inspiration that will force them to change behaviour. There's no better way to do that than bring the world's best talent to showcase what great looks like in that sport. We've certainly seen the impact of the WTA Finals in female tennis participation, particularly at a young level. That's only going to accelerate as our commitment to tennis stays the test of time."

He was also very positive about the event lasting longer than the three-year contract it is currently under. "We are committed to a long-term commitment to tennis. And I don't talk about tennis as male or female. It's just tennis. We talk about sport, at least from a SURJ/PIF perspective, as gender agnostic. We are committed to growing sport. When we say that, we mean we grow it for men and women. Ultimately, for us, having men's and women's elite tennis in the kingdom in perpetuity is an important thing for us," he concluded.