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Australian Open boss Craig Tiley has for the first time addressed reports of a potential defection to the United States Tennis Association – but stopped short of revealing where his future lies.
Tiley has served as the grand slam’s tournament director since 2006 and Tennis Australia’s chief executive since 2013, transforming the Australian Open into the country’s biggest sporting and entertainment event.
Craig Tiley didn’t deny links to role as the head of US tennis.Credit: Getty Images
The South African-born powerbroker is one of the most influential people in tennis, and sports business website Sportico reported last month that the USTA had chosen Tiley to be its next CEO after a six-month search. There has been radio silence from Tiley and Tennis Australia since.
Tiley declined to confirm or deny his USTA links to this masthead on Friday, saying only days out from the start of this year’s Open that he did not want to “fuel” the speculation.
“Look, to be perfectly blunt and honest, it’s speculation. There’s a lot of speculation. I’ve read the speculation, I’ve seen the speculation, and I’m kind of not going to go there,” Tiley said. “I won’t fuel it because if I make a comment [that is all that will happen].”
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Pushed further on the fact he had not denied the potential shock switch, Tiley said: “I’m sticking to what I said”.
Nick Kyrgios will play doubles only at the Australian Open because he is not physically ready for singles, but Tiley confirmed that Novak Djokovic, who withdrew from next week’s Adelaide lead-in tournament, was in no doubt for the Open and would arrive in Melbourne on Monday.
Djokovic has had a headline-grabbing summer, ending his affiliation with the Professional Tennis Players Association, which he co-founded in 2020, because his values no longer aligned with the organisation’s direction.
The PTPA launched legal action against tennis’ governing bodies, including the ATP and WTA and the four majors, in March last year, based on claims of “anti-competitive practices and a blatant disregard for player welfare”.
Novak Djokovic with Tennis Australia boss Tiley at the Australian Open in February 2021.Credit: Getty Images
The lawsuit is ongoing, but the union filed a letter to the US Southern District Court in November that it was close to reaching a deal with Tennis Australia, which confirmed the development at the time.
Tiley said he was restricted on what he could say but that a deal was hopefully “imminent”.
“What I can say is that we decided as an organisation early on that if we’ve got to expend resources ... we would much rather make it in compensating the players and growing the game than we would in legal fees and damages,” he said.
Players will compete for a record $111.5 million prizemoney at this month’s Open, while Tiley and co have dramatically increased the entertainment and dining experience, including bringing leading international brands into the Melbourne Park precinct.
The scene at Melbourne Park ahead of the 2026 Australian Open.Credit: Getty Images
He expects attendance at next week’s “Opening Week” to match that of the tournament’s first week a decade ago, despite the qualifying events effectively being the only competitive tennis on offer.
The week’s festivities include a first-ever opening ceremony next week on the Saturday night, headlined by Roger Federer, before main draw matches begin the next day, January 18.
Tiley also said this year was the first in TA’s ambitious five-year strategy for the sport to be ranked first or second in participation, develop more champions, and turn the Australian Open into a billion-dollar operation.
“We want to provide opportunities for the professional players and fans to experience something they never have before,” he said.
“We continue to be Australia’s biggest event, and will be one of the world’s biggest annual events. We plan to own January from a sport and entertainment point of view – not just from tennis. We’ve got some big plans.”
Tiley agreed with world No.1 and dual Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka’s comments about the “insane” year-round tennis schedule and said the sport needed a proper off-season and more rest periods, but that there was not a simple fix.
He will not grant Daniil Medvedev’s wish for the Open’s night sessions to start an hour earlier than the 7pm slot, saying the broadcast agreement with Nine, the owner of this masthead, did not permit that.
“We used to start at 7.45pm, and now we start at 7pm, so we grabbed some time there,” he said.
“We do everything we possibly can because we are very mindful of player welfare and the fact that none of us wants to finish at ridiculous times in the morning.”
The on-court coaching pods will be back, but will look different from last year, while Tiley promised other innovations that are set to be unveiled in the coming weeks.
“We’re on a three-year journey of presenting the game differently for the world,” Tiley said.
“It’ll be seen more next year, but we’re going to set a new standard of what the future of the game is going to look like, from an experience point of view for the on-site fan, and someone watching at home.”
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