World Tennis Magazine

Unique Tennis Perspectives

delray beach tennis

WTA Signs Multi-Year, Multi-Million Dollar Deal With Xerox: This Week in Tennis Business with Justin Cohen

by

By Justin Cohen @JustinCohen44

WTA signs multi-year, multi-million dollar deal with Xerox

The WTA has announced a multi-year, multi-million dollar global partnership with Xerox, the world’s leading enterprise for business process and document management. Xerox will become the WTA’s exclusive supplier of business services and office document technology. Stacey Allaster, Chairman and CEO of the WTA, commented on the new major global partnership: “Xerox is one of the world’s leading iconic brands, and to have them not only as a sponsor but as a partner is a real plus to the WTA family,” she said. “Through their services and products, Xerox will add significant business value to the WTA and our tournaments, and as a marketing partner we know they will build on the popularity of women’s tennis and work with us to take the WTA to the next level of success. 2013 is a milestone year for the WTA as we celebrate the 40th anniversary of women’s professional tennis and the announcement of this worldwide partnership with Xerox is a fantastic way to start the season.” “Since its inception in 1973, the WTA has fostered a long-held commitment to innovation, which has seen our organization grow to become the world’s leading professional sport for women. Partnering with Xerox, a brand with a heritage of innovation, a strong commitment to excellence and unrivalled global business services is a perfect fit for the WTA,” Allaster added about the new Xerox partnership. During the first year of the agreement, Xerox will activate at 18 WTA tournaments around the globe, accessing significant global marketing, digital, broadcast and content rights throughout the WTA season, including ePlayer, mobile and social networking applications. Additionally, Xerox will become a partner of the prestigious TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships – Istanbul, which in 2012 set records for attendance, broadcast coverage and digital fan engagement. The announcement marks the sixth new sponsorship agreement secured by the WTA over the last two and a half years, after BNP Paribas, Rolex, Oriflame, Peak and Jetstar. The WTA Board is expected to approve the Xerox deal this week. GroupM Entertainment & Sports Partnerships (ESP) negotiated the partnership for Xerox, and manages their global sports and entertainment partnership portfolio.

Davis Cup Attendance Facts from United States vs. Brazil tie in Jacksonville

According to an article written by Jeff Elliott in The Florida Times-Union, attendance for Sunday’s Davis Cup singles matches between the United States and visiting Brazil was 3,153, bringing the three-day total to 10,815, about 25 percent of what three days of capacity crowds at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena would have been. The low turnout, albeit on Super Bowl weekend, will likely take Jacksonville out of the running for future consideration to serve as the host city for a Davis Cup tie. In the last 10 years, 12 American cities have hosted a Davis Cup tie, and only one venue — Lawrence Joel Coliseum in Winston-Salem, N.C. — has served as the host city twice during that time. The USTA announced after Sunday’s competition that Boise, Idaho, had been selected as the American city to host the quarterfinal match.

Nadal launches Tennis Academy App

Recreational tennis players can now learn directly from Rafael Nadal about the secrets to the Spaniard’s playing techniques. The new Rafael Nadal Tennis Academy App, powered by Vstrator and available at the iTunes App Store, is for all recreational players and allows them to learn directly from the 11-time Grand Slam champion. The app offers exclusive, tutorials of Rafa’s strokes, along with Vstrator’s easy-to-use video coaching tools so players can capture their strokes, analyse their games, and compare their technique side-by-side with Rafa’s. Fans, players, and coaches simply open the App, record or import video from their smartphone’s camera, then “Vstrate” it using the drawing tools, which allows them to highlight the video so they can zero in on any part of their game. They can then frame the video forward and back, and compare their technique to Rafa as well as other players. Then the Vstrator video can be shared via Facebook, Twitter, Email, or SMS Text with friends, family, coaches and other players. “Now, you don’t have to be a pro to get pro-quality coaching and take your game to the next level,” said Vstrator’s CEO & Founder, Rob Autry. “Rafa is one of the greatest players of all times, and with the Rafael Nadal Tennis Academy App and Vstrator, players at every level now have access to the same elite sports training technology used by world-class coaches and athletes.” The Rafael Nadal Tennis Academy App features nine tutorials of the tennis champion’s serve and returns with a host of future tutorials of all Rafa’s strokes, along with exclusive insights from Rafa himself on what makes him one of the world’s best tennis players. Members also can upload their own videos as well as their own Vstrated coaching sessions to the Rafael Nadal Tennis Academy on Vstrator.com.

Tennis Channel to feature Nadal’s Singles Return this afternoon at 4 p.m. EST

Tennis Channel has added former World No. 1 and 11-time Grand Slam Champion Rafael Nadal’s first singles match in seven months to its live Wednesday lineup with coverage starting at 4 p.m. EST. Nadal will face off against Argentine Federico Delbonis, who won his opening round match on Tuesday against Gudio Pella in a third-set tiebreak. Former Princeton University standout and ATP World Tour player Leif Shiras will call the match for Tennis Channel.

Querrey accepts main draw wild card for Delray Beach International Tennis Championships

World No. 20 Sam Querrey, who clinched the win for the United States Davis Cup squad on Super Bowl Sunday in Jacksonville, has accepted a wild card into the main draw at the ATP Delray Beach International Tennis Championships in Delray Beach, Fla. The American will be making his fifth appearance at the Delray Beach Tennis Center on historic Atlantic Avenue. Querrey has an overall 4-2 record, including a semifinal performance in 2008. This year’s tournament will take place from February 22-March 3. For more information or to order tickets, visit www.YellowTennisBall.com.

Former Top 5 Nicolas Kiefer to join Sharapova as hitting partner

According to a report by Matt Cronin, former ATP World Tour Top 5 Nicolas Kiefer of Germany will join Maria Sharapova as her hitting partner for the next three weeks. Sharapova’s usual hitting partner Vladimir Voltchkov hurt his ankle badly during the first week of the Australian Open and will be out for a few months while recovering.

World TeamTennis’ Philadelphia Freedoms to unveil new logo today

The new logo for the Philadelphia Freedoms of the Mylan World TeamTennis Pro League will be unveiled to the public today at 12 Noon EST. The new logo will be rolled out simultaneously on their official Facebook fan page, twitter feed and PhiladelphiaFreedoms.com.

2013 Mylan World TeamTennis Marquee Draft set for Tuesday, February 12

The 2013 Mylan World TeamTennis Marquee Draft takes place on Tuesday, February 12 at 12 Noon EST. This will be followed exactly one month later with the 2013 Mylan WTT Roster Draft on March 12. These two key dates will shape each team from top to bottom. Mylan World TeamTennis has additionally announced that the 2013 regular season will run from July 7 through July 24.

Wilson kicks off nationwide spin effect demo tour, showcasing technology in new Steam S Rackets

Wilson Racquet Sports announced on Tuesday its nationwide “Spin Effect Tour” that will visit retailers and consumers in more than 200 venues, showcasing the brand’s game changing, Spin Effect Technology™. Taking place from February through June, the Spin Effect Tour targets avid tennis players at tennis facilities across the country and will also be featured at some of the country’s leading junior developmental programs: Brookhaven Tennis Club in Dallas, Westheimer Tennis Club in Houston, Sanlando Park Tennis Center in Orlando, and the Evert Tennis Academy in Boca Raton. Wilson’s proprietary Spin Effect Technology™ rackets, the Steam 99S™ and Steam 105S™, became available to consumers in January. Both rackets dramatically increase spin for consumers of all levels, enabling players to add more than 200 RPMs on their shots without needing to change their swing. Wilson’s marketing and sales team will be leading the event to explain the benefits around the proprietary Spin Effect, the Steam S rackets, and they will also take players through the TrackMan experience which tracks ball rotation, height and arc of shots and was used in the development of Steam S rackets. Players who participate in a Spin Effect Tour will also have an opportunity to win an autographed Roger Federer racket and Victoria Azarenka racket. The tour welcomes players of all ages. For more information about hosting a Spin Effect Tour event, please contact: wilsontour@wilson.com.

Jacksonville Tennis “Serving Up a Cure” for Cancer Research

Deerwood Country Club’s 3rd Annual Tennis Tournament “Serving Up a Cure,” held April 19-21, 2013 in Jacksonville, Fla., will again raise funds to fight cancer with a men’s and women’s doubles tournament, and fun functions throughout the weekend. “It promises to be even more successful this year with its larger Open Division, thanks to the support of our local pros,” says organizer Annette Meinrod. “It is going to be an amazing weekend, April 19-21, with a culinary exhibition on Friday night highlighting our ‘Caterers’ Extravaganza.’” The “Party to Ace Cancer” on Saturday night will be hosted by Cantina Laredo and feature live music with Big Al and the Kaholics. In 2012, “Serving Up a Cure” raised over $30,000 for “The Ellie DIPG Research Fund, a cancer research fund seeking a cure for Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Gliomas (DIPG), the deadliest of all pediatric brain cancers, and “The Gabrile House of Care, a hospitality house for cancer and organ transplant patients receiving care away from home. For more information, visit www.servingupacure.com.

Singapore, Monterrey, Tianjin Still Finalists To Host WTA Championships In 2014 And Beyond: This Week in Tennis Business with Justin Cohen

by

By Justin Cohen @JustinCohen44

Monterrey, Tianjin and Singapore still in the running to host 2014 WTA Championships

According to a tweet from Daniel Kaplan (@dkaplanSBJ) of the SportsBusiness Journal, Monterrey, Mexico, Tianjin, China and Singapore have made the final cut to host the year-end WTA Championships starting in 2014 and beyond. Previously a finalist, Kazan, Russia has been eliminated from the list of possible host cities. WTA Chairman and CEO Stacey Allaster will visit Monterrey this week, Singapore the week of February 25 and Tianjin the week of March 4. The winning host city will be announced in April. “The WTA Championships provide cities around the world a stage on which their cities can be showcased. I am very pleased with the amount of international interest the Championships’ bidding process has received,” Allaster said. “I look forward to meeting with each finalist city and having the opportunity to review, in-person, the details of each bid.” The WTA Championships, which current site is in Istanbul, Turkey, features the Top 8 singles players and Top 8 doubles teams of the season competing for $4.9 million in prize money.

Several attendance records set during 2013 Australian Open

The overall tournament attendance this year at the 2013 Australian Open in Melbourne was 684,457, which fell just short of the 2012 record of 686,006 fans. A new second-Sunday record of 25,061 fans attended the Men’s Championship between World No. 1 Novak Djokovic and No. 3 Andy Murray, witnessing Djokovic become the first man in the Open Era (1969) to win three consecutive titles in Melbourne en route to his fourth overall Australian Open crown. The previous second-Sunday record was set in 2009 with 22,098 fans packing the stands. Day 13 attendance was 20,036, a new second-Saturday record. Day 13 was the day of the Women’s Championship between World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka and China’s Li Na. Also noteworthy, a second-Friday record of 22,103 fans was in attendance, breaking the previous record of 20,230 set in 2012.

Broadcast/Media and Digital/Social Media Facts from 2013 Australian Open

At this year’s Australian Open in Melbourne, more than 720 journalists, photographers and videographers were credentialed as media, including 315 international media from 40 different countries. Asian media were represented as 22 percent of all international media. More than 27 different television networks were on site during the first Grand Slam of the year, broadcasting to more than 200 countries. As of January 26, there were 14.1 million unique visitors to the official Australian Open website. The most popular female players of the event were Sloane Stephens (252,444 player profile views), Maria Sharapova (222,476), Victoria Azarenka (193,901), Li Na (184,469) and Serena Williams (143,909). The most popular male players were Roger Federer (348,799), Novak Djokovic (239,884), Andy Murray (178,949), Jeremy Chardy (116,689) and Bernard Tomic (113,062). This year’s Australian Open Facebook Fan Page grew to 887,158 likes and a weekly reach of 6.1 million, while the official Twitter Page grew to 155,738 followers. The official Australian Open Android App attracted roughly 47 million page views throughout the two-week event.

China contributed the third-highest number of visitors to the 2013 Australian Open official website

According to the Australian Financial Review, China is now contributing the third-highest number of visitors to the Australian Open’s website, displacing the UK. This year, 9.3 percent of online visitors are from China, behind Australia (23 percent) and the US (16.4 percent). It may have a lot to do with Tennis Australia’s decision this year to use Chinese social media sites Sina Weibo (the equivalent of Twitter) and a new online partnership with one of the big four portals in China, sports.qq.com. In the first few days of the tournament, downloads of the Mandarin scoreboard built into this site were just over 1 million. Through the first Sunday of the tournament, China’s Li Na and Serena and Venus Williams were the most tweeted about WTA Tour players.

Mary Heath named Chief Marketing Officer for International Tennis Hall of Fame & Museum

The International Tennis Hall of Fame & has announced the promotion of Mary Heath to the new position of Chief Marketing Officer. Heath has been the Senior Director of Sales & Partnership Marketing for the Hall of Fame since 2008. Heath brings more than 30 years of experience to the new role, having previously held positions as a Vice President of IMG’s Tennis Division and as an ATP World Tour and WTA Tournament Director. For more than a decade, she was the co-owner of Rhode Island based Perennial Events, a firm that handled sponsorship sales and event management for clients including Target, Peter Jacobsen Productions, CVS Caremark, the Preservation Society of Newport County, and Swarovski. ”I am very pleased to announce Mary’s well-deserved promotion to Chief Marketing Officer of the International Tennis Hall of Fame & Museum,” said Mark L. Stenning, CEO. “In recent years, she has successfully developed the Hall of Fame’s relationships with sponsors, resulting in increased awareness for our mission and development of the Hall of Fame’s programs. With Mary’s great talents and expertise, and her dedication to the sport, she is the right person to lead our sales and marketing efforts as we look to grow the organization in the future.” In her new role, Heath will be responsible for sponsorship sales and activation of sponsor programs for the International Tennis Hall of Fame & Museum, as well as the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships, an ATP World Tour tournament, and the annual Hall of Fame Enshrinement Weekend. She will also continue her role as event director for The Legends Ball, the Hall of Fame’s annual gala fundraiser hosted during the US Open in New York City. In addition, Heath will have oversight of all sales, marketing, and public relations initiatives of the organization.

Davis Cup in Jacksonville to hold free, open practice sessions today

The U.S. and Brazil Davis Cup teams will each hold free, open practice sessions for fans to come watch the players practice prior to competing in the World Group First Round at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. Doors will open for the Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013 open practice at 3:45 p.m. The event is free and limited to the first 600 fans. Fans will not need a ticket and may enter the arena through the main entrance along A. Philip Randolph Blvd. Free parking is available on a first-come, first-serve basis in Lot Z on the corner of Duval Street and Palmetto Street. The U.S. team will practice from 4-5 p.m., and the Brazil squad from 5-6 p.m. (the USTA cannot guarantee that all players will be in attendance during these practice windows). The U.S. team is comprised of John Isner, Sam Querrey, Bob and Mike Bryan, and Captain Jim Courier. The Brazil team features Thomaz Bellucci, Thiago Alves, Marcelo Melo, Bruno Soares, and Captain Joao Zwetsch. The Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena Box Office will also be open until 4 p.m. for fans who wish to purchase tickets for the Feb. 1-3 matches.

Delray Beach International Tennis Championships adds Monfils, Cilic, Dolgopolov to player field

Former Top 10 player Gael Monfils, current World No. 13 Marin Cilic and No. 23 Alexandr Dolgopolov have committed to play in the 2013 Delray Beach International Tennis Championships, joining early signees John Isner and Kei Nishikori. Monfils will be playing in the South Florida event for the first time in his career. This year’s tournament will be held at the Delray Beach Tennis Center on Atlantic Avenue from February 22-March 3.

World No. 19 Kohlschreiber commits to ATP World Tour 250 event in Kitzbühel

Following his third-round loss at the Australian Open in Melbourne, World No. 19 Philipp Kohlschreiber hit the slopes at the world famous Hahnenkamm Mountain ahead of this weekend’s Alpine Ski World Cup event, to announce that he will compete in the ATP World Tour 250 event in Kitzbühel. The German joins top-ranked Austrian Jurgen Melzer as early commitments. This year’s bet-at-home Cup 2013 will take place from July 28-August 3.

Former Wimbledon Champion Conchita Martinez named Captain for Spain’s Fed Cup team

The Spanish Tennis Federation announced that former Wimbledon Champion Conchita Martinez will take over as Captain of Spain’s Fed Cup team. She is replacing Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, who resigned. The 1994 Wimbledon singles champion will lead the Spanish squad against Ukraine in their first round tie in World Group II from February 9-10 in Alicante.

A BACKHANDED GIFT, A Novel By “A Terrible Splendor” Author Marshall Jon Fisher

A BACKHANDED GIFT is a funny, moving literary work with tennis serving as the backdrop. The book tells the story of Robert Cherney, a 30-year-old aspiring writer, who has left New York City for a job teaching tennis in Munich in the late 1980s. Aside from private lessons, he coaches the Mattathias Club men’s league team, a motley group of neurotics whose eccentricities seem exacerbated by their situation as Jews living in Germany. They have made fortunes in postwar Germany but are hounded daily by the ghosts of the past and wracked with guilt over living so blithely among their parents’ tormentors. One of the players on Robert’s team is his best friend in Munich, Max Altmann, a successful and wealthy young businessman who is also Robert’s employer, landlord, provocateur, and guide to Munich’s nightlife. In addition to trying to figure out his life and not go crazy teaching tennis, Robert is trying to forget Lexa, the focus of years of erotic obsession back in New York. Helping him are Ingrid, a 40-ish Mattathias member and tennis pupil, and Veronique, a Jewish graduate student whom Max tries to set up with Robert. Love, tennis, sex, frustrated artistic ambition, and the dilemma of being a German Jew are all ingredients of this literary delight that is at times serious and comedic. A BACKHANDED GIFT is available now in paperback or as an e-book at Amazon (http://m1e.net/c?96018505-0KdaR93tggfbA%408405759-NrHwpOB8C.CCg and via other major outlets. Fisher’s most well-known previous work is the PEN award-winning “A Terrible Splendor: Three Extraordinary Men, A World Poised for War, and the Greatest Tennis Match Ever Played,” which was published to great acclaim in 2009. “Rich and rewarding,” wrote the Wall Street Journal of “A Terrible Splendror,” while the Washington Post called it “enthralling…a gripping tale.”

WTA TOUR COULD RETURN TO DELRAY BEACH, FLA

by

By Charles Bricker

Could the women’s tennis tour return to seaside, holiday-maker paradise Delray Beach, Fla., where it once was a highly desirable venue 15 years ago?

The idea isn’t even on the back burner of anyone at the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour, but it’s beginning to smoulder on the back burner of Mark Baron’s brain, and Baron, tournament director of the ATP 250 that began in Delray on Monday, has a history of bringing his ideas to fruition.

“I love to throw stuff at the wall and see if it sticks,” Baron said. “My concept is to have three tournaments all together — a women’s event, the ATP Champions and this ATP tournament.”

Serena Williams
Serena Williams

It was almost exactly one year ago that Baron, walking the grounds of the Delray Beach Tennis Center on the free first day of qualifying, pondered how he could put paying customers in the stands on a sunny weekend day in late February in South Florida.

Something clicked on upstairs. What about Jim Courier’s international tour of 30- and 40-year old former Grand Slam winners and finalists. He said he phoned Courier with the concept and they had a verbal agreement to run a four-day event, beginning on Saturday and finishing on Tuesday night.

That would create a huge attendance boost for four days on which there was previously either no paying fans or (Monday and Tuesday) a couple of days where there are historically small crowds.

He then phoned the ATP office in London to get the dual tournaments sanctioned and found out that the ATP was planning a former champions tour of its own. He settled on the ATP group because the logistics seemed better — both events being run by the ATP.

This past weekend, while qualifying for the regular tour International Tennis Championships played out on the outside courts, John McEnroe, Patrick Rafter, Mats Wilander, Pat Cash, Aaron Krickstein, Johan Kriek, Andres Gomez and Ronald Agenor pulled in about 4,500 fans each day.

This morning, Baron leaned back in a chair in his office, smiling at the success of his marketing coup and looking forward to a second year in 2011. By 2013, he said, he wants to add the WTA to the mix.

The women would play the first week, overlapping the start of the Champions group and giving Baron additional revenue by adding two WTA semis to the calendar. The Champions then would overlap the men, who would begin on Monday.

The old Virginia Slims WTA tournament at Delray was a big-time tournament. In the 12 years it was played, Steffi Graf won it six times and Gabriela Sabatini and Chris Evert three times each. It was a great convenience for all three. Graf and Evert had homes in nearby Boca Raton and Sabatini lived in Miami.

It couldn’t be lost on Baron that Venus and Serena Williams live in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., about a 20-minute drive from the Delray Beach Tennis Center. Could this be their hometown tournament?

There’s a very long distance to travel between the back burner in Baron’s brain and placement of a new or transferred tournament on the WTA calendar. But when Baron throws something at the wall, he usually coats in with super glue.

Charles Bricker can be reached at nflwriterr@aol.com