Craig Tiley plans to stay in Australian tennis’ high job for the foreseeable future, pushed by the lofty ambition to remodel the Australian Open into the largest sporting occasion on the planet.
Tiley joined Tennis Australia in 2005 as director of tennis, turned the Melbourne grand slam’s match director a yr later, and has additionally been the nationwide physique’s chief govt since 2013.
The Australian Open has already developed considerably beneath Tiley’s management from simply being about sport into an leisure leviathan, and he hopes to quickly supply gamers greater than $100 million prizemoney (up from $86.5 million this yr) – a sum already up for grabs throughout the summer season.
The Melbourne Park precinct.Credit score: Luis Ascui
The South African-born tennis govt informed this masthead he had emerged from the “most tough” interval of his working life, the COVID-19 pandemic and Novak Djokovic’s deportation, intent on not solely enhancing Australia’s slam however enjoying a job in revolutionising the complete circuit.
“I need the Australian Open to be the largest sporting occasion, not simply within the southern hemisphere, or in January, however the greatest sporting occasion on the earth,” Tiley mentioned.
“We’re going to develop the time we’ve got, which we’ve already began doing with the opening week, and we’re going to be on the forefront of the technological expertise. You’ve obtained to speculate thousands and thousands of {dollars} in digital transformation, and we’ve gone and employed the perfect to assist us try this.
“I’m a bit impatient. Individuals inform me you’ve obtained to attend years for expertise, however I’d prefer it to be right here tomorrow.
“I believe if you do come on-site right here, you’ve obtained to really feel that you just’re in probably the most particular expertise on the earth, and the one means you do really feel that’s if I do know precisely what you need. So, you’ll be creating 1,000,000 completely different experiences. That’s a problem for individuals as a result of it’s not the best way individuals usually suppose.”
In a wide-ranging interview, Tiley mentioned:
