AO Set For Historic Las Vegas Edition After NRL CEO Takes Reins Of Tennis Australia

WENDELL HUSSEY | Cadet | CONTACT

The Australian tennis landscape is set for a major shakeup in the coming months, following the announcement of a new CEO.

With Craig Tilley off to American tennis to try and make the US Open as fun and popular as the Australian version, NRL CEO Andrew Abdo is set to take over the reins here.

The 'bombshell announcement has rocked the NRL to its core' (according to every league headline writer), with Abdo leaving the NRL after 6 years in the role.

Successfully steering the NRL through covid, record breaking rights deal and a historic expansion plan - Abdo leaves the game in a place where it's actually being run like a business.

However, it's believed he's going to take some of the impetus of his colleague Peter V'landys to the game of tennis.

Sources close to Abdo say the first few things on the list as new CEO are 'quite eyebrow raising.'

Notably, the first big change will see the Australian Open move to Las Vegas next year for the inaugural Vegas Australian Open Round.

The move is aimed at increasing the revenue from the gambling dollar, and putting the tournament front and centre of the American market.

New rule innovations are set to also be introduced, with 10 point sets and players able to serve as fast they can any where in one half of the court.

The open will also be extended out to a 24 hour a day fixture, in order to jam as many gambling ads in as possible - with Abdo set to work with bookmakers to increase the number of markets offered for every matchup.

While sceptics are likely to claim these changes might actually be a detriment to the game, the revenue is projected to trend up - which is of course the most important thing for any sport.

More to come.