Chris Kermode: ATP chairman on his vision for men’s tennis

The popular 49-year-old Briton, who has been so instrumental in the success of the Aegon Championships at Queen’s Club and the season-ending World Tour Finals at London’s O2 Arena, believes he has clocked up about 10 hours a day just talking and listening to the players since arriving in Melbourne.

He will already have heard some conflicting views. While Roger Federer would like to see an increase in the speed of courts around the world, Rafa Nadal is adamant that wouldn’t be good for “the show”. The Spaniard would like to see fewer hard-court events on the schedule, while others think sets should be shortened to keep minds and bodies healthy throughout the season.

Kermode takes the view that men’s tennis does not need much of a makeover.

“Unquestionably, the tennis in the last 10 years has been the best I have ever seen,” he says.

“I’m not sure with the talent and the way the game has grown in terms of the endurance level whether speeding up the courts will immediately mean the game is shorter. I think if the product is good and exciting, people will want more of it.

“What’s interesting is that people say how tough it is physically, but then actually you see how long these guys are staying in the sport. It seems to be a counter-argument. They are playing for a lot longer – way longer – than the previous generation.”

In February, Kermode will travel to Buenos Aires and then to Rio de Janeiro, which is hosting a new ATP 500 event.

The Challenger Tour will also be on his list of priorities.

It is currently very tough for any player outside the top 100 without the luxury of national funding to make a decent living on tour.

The ATP has guaranteed a minimum prize pot of US $40,000 (£24,500) at all Challenger events this year and aims to increase that to a minimum of $50,000 (£30,500) and encourage more countries to stage events.