"The principle of having a Masters 1000 on grass - I would absolutely support that" - Henman offers insight on challenges of setting up new grass event

Tim Henman is 'excited' about the prospect of a 10th Masters 1000 event on the ATP calendar. Along with this, he also supporting the idea of a grass event in this category despite the possible setbacks.

The Saudi Masters will commence in 2028, and has already brought a whole host of discourse. Many fans and pundits have criticised the inclusion into what is already a very busy schedule, not allowing much rest in between the relentless tournaments, with a lot of them mandatory for the best players in the world. While the event in Saudi Arabia is non-mandatory Masters 1000 event, the enticing prize money set to be on offer is a tantalising motive for many.

"I think the conversation about a Saudi Masters 1000 event has been in the pipeline for a long, long time, and there's no doubt Saudi Arabia are coming into sport and I think tennis as a whole wanted to embrace that idea, so I'm excited about it," Henman told Sky Sports. "The date in the calendar has been a little bit challenging but I'm sure once the Saudi 1000 is up and running it will be a great event."

He went on to pinpoint the rise in tennis in that region of the world, while playing down the prize money. "We've seen the WTA Finals in Riyadh and that is an event which is going from strength to strength but I think if you're going to have the best male players in the world I'm sure the fans will come and watch," Henman said. "When you look at what Saudi Arabia have done by investing in all sorts of different sports, I'm sure the prize money will absolutely be in line with the other Masters 1000 events."

The former British number one has been one of the pundits to come out and question the schedule and number of tournaments, previously stating 'there is too much irrelevant tennis tournaments.' Nevertheless, he was not prepared to turn his nose up at another chance to witness the best players in the world lock horns on the main stage.

"Talking about schedule and adding in an event is an interesting topic of conversation," Henman stated. "When you look at the pinnacle of the sport with the four Grand Slams and the Masters 1000s I think that's what we be focusing our attention on, to get the players together to play in those big events, but perhaps playing less of those smaller events so that there's a clearer narrative - the best players playing each other more often. It is another event in the calendar and I think there is still work to be done but I'm sure Saudi Masters 1000 will be a good edition."

There are six ATP Masters 1000 events on hard court (one indoors), three on clay and zero on grass. It has been a huge anomaly of the grass swing, with its most notable event by far being the prestigious Wimbledon. Outside of that, there are six other tournaments held on grass. Two of them are ATP 500 while another four are 250 competitions.

"Having a Masters 1000 on grass is another topic of conversation," Henman believed, as he delved into the topic. "I would love to see that and there are Masters 1000 events on other surfaces so why not on grass?"

While the prospect is an exciting one, it may be harder than first imagined. "There are challenges around facilities, looking at the calendar there's three weeks between Roland-Garros and Wimbledon so that middle week would be an obvious opportunity but it's not that straightforward with sanctions and everything that goes with it. The principle of having a Masters 1000 on grass - I would absolutely support that."

Fellow pundit Laura Robson warmed to the idea but could not see it occurring due to grass court facilities and the number of tournaments already being held throughout the calendar year.

"You can try and upgrade a tournament that is already there but honestly, I think the calendar is already so jam-packed. No-one is asking for another Masters 1000," Robson acknowledged. "It would certainly be nice because it's the only surface that doesn't have one, but at the same time it's a very busy time of the season. There are some great options if you're looking to play 500 but logistically it's very, very tough to have a grass-court venue that can hold a Masters-level event if you think about the courts needed to hold the draw size in the first place. There's very few permanent grass-courts venues in the first place. I don't think anyone is asking for it, it would be just nice to have compared to all the other Masters events that are on and played on hardcourts."