Steve Simon's arrival as the WTA's new CEO "comes as the tour is still searching for a lead global sponsor and other fresh sources of revenue," according to Christopher Clarey of the N.Y. TIMES. It also comes "amid concerns about the structure of the tour calendar, particularly at the end of the season, and about the ability of players to stay healthy, despite the 2009 expansion of the off-season, which is now at eight weeks." Simon said of the schedule, "It absolutely is creating problems, and the women are having a difficult time getting through it. ... The one thing I don’t want to do is compress it so players are playing more in a lesser period of time, because that’s not healthy.” Simon also said that the tour "should continue to examine the so-called grunting issue, which has been polarizing." After the WTA’s "rapid expansion in Asia, chiefly in China, Simon sounds ready to focus on other regions." He said of the Asia-Pacific region, "We need to make sure we respect the region and don’t oversaturate it." But he added, "We need to have balance. You need North America. You need Asia. You need Europe. You need to be looking into some other markets, because there are obviously some big ones out there that we don’t have a lot of tennis in -- South America, and India is another.” Clarey notes Simon’s arrival "provides tennis ... with a clear opportunity for greater cooperation on thorny issues like conflicts in commercial sponsorship and the Davis Cup and Fed Cup national team events" (N.Y. TIMES, 10/26).
MISSING PIECE? Clarey noted Serena Williams, by her "own choice, is not playing at the WTA Finals this week in Singapore," and in her absence, the "elite tournament feels less like a fitting end to a fascinating season and more like a spectacle unto itself." Former player and current Eurosport analyst Jo Durie said, "A terrible blow for the WTA. It does devalue the event." Clarey notes it "remains unclear to what extent Williams’s decision was prompted by physical problems or how much the emotional fallout of her unsuccessful run to the Grand Slam played a role." But as a result, the WTA is "getting an early peek at what a post-Williams world might look like." Simon said, "Anytime you don't have Serena, that's not a good thing." Clarey wrote what is "awkward for the WTA" that Williams is "scheduled to play in two stops" on the Int'l Premier Tennis League in Japan and Manila. WTA President Micky Lawler: "We’ve got the Singaporean government investing huge amounts of resources to bring the best of women’s tennis to Singapore, and having the IPTL in the region a little bit later is perhaps not the best for the sport." But Lawler said that it was "understandable that Williams would not go to Singapore only to do promotional work if she was ailing." She said the WTA and Williams were “working on some other solution, where she does support the efforts put forth by the Singapore government and does some work throughout the year.” Lawler: "We understand it. Yes, we don't like it, but we understand it" (N.Y. TIMES, 10/25).
