"I think it’s just been disappointing": Former British number one unhappy with crowd presence in WTA Finals in Riyadh

Former British number one Tim Henman believes that crowd presence during the ongoing WTA Finals has been ‘disappointing’. The mega-event, which is the last in the women’s tennis calendar, is currently taking place in the city of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

It is the first time that such a mega-event is being hosted by the Middle-Eastern giant. The tournament has been a talking point ever since it was announced that it would be organised in Saudi Arabia for the next three years. Many people in the West argued that Saudi Arabia’s heavy investment in sports is to clear its image, which has remained under scrutiny for a long time because of the human rights situation.

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Despite all those apprehensions, the tournament went ahead as planned, where eight top women players were battling to secure the ultimate prize. Britain’s former number one Henman has recently spoken to Sky Sports, as quoted by The Tennis Gazette, where he expressed his disappointment about the lack of crowd presence in the arena. The 50-year-old was of the opinion that such low crowds are not doing justice to a tournament as big as the WTA Finals.

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“I think it’s just been disappointing,” he said. “The way the event has been hosted, you look at the stadium courts, it’s absolutely fantastic, all the facilities, practice courts, restaurants, they’ve laid it all on. So, it’s just a little bit frustrating, and I think disappointing for the top eight players in the world that we haven’t had a better atmosphere. The first day was OK, which was part of the Saudi weekend, but yesterday, to have 300-400 in the crowd when you’ve got a 5,000 seater stadium, it just doesn’t create the atmosphere that these great players deserve. A lot of the players who were here have been talking about change, and part of the reason they’re here is to bring about change.”