Paris Masters prepares for bow on 'second-biggest court in world'

PARIS — The Paris Masters debuts at its new La Defense Arena home this month, with the vast showpiece court second only in size to that of the US Open's Arthur Ashe Stadium on the current global circuit.

Tournament director Cedric Pioline said it showed that the indoor event was "evolving" and that the new venue in the western suburbs of the French capital would allow for innovations such as an improved walk-on for the players that will feature a laser show.

The new base will be familiar to TV viewers as the venue for the swimming events at the Olympics last year. It is also the home of French Top 14 rugby club Racing 92 and regularly hosts the world's best-known performing artists.

"The center court will have a capacity of around 17,500 people, making it the second-biggest court in the world for (tournaments held annually), behind the US Open center court," said Pioline, a former world No 5 who was a runner-up at Wimbledon and the US Open.

"There will be just over 4,000 seats on Court No 1 and 4,000 on Court No 2. Court No 3 has the capacity of a few hundred seats," the Frenchman added.

The ATP Masters 1000 event runs from Oct 27-Nov 2.

In early 2024, organizers signed a 10-year contract to stage the event at La Defense Arena, a decision made in order to comply with ATP requirements for its biggest tournaments.

Rumors had long circulated that the event would lose its Masters status due to the size of the Bercy Arena — its home since 1986.

"Without any changes on our part, over a medium-term cycle — we are talking about four to five years — there was a possibility of being downgraded (to a Masters 500 or 250 event)," Pioline said.

As well as enjoying a boost in seating capacity, the tournament's new venue will also provide more on-court room for players.

"We have also decided to increase the playing surface for the comfort of the players," Pioline said. " (At Bercy), the outside courts were a little small in relation to the physical commitment of the players and their coverage of the court.

"Overall, it felt a bit cramped," he added. "We simply needed to be able to evolve," he added of the decision to leave Bercy.

Pioline emphasized one tradition from Bercy would continue at La Defense: the Paris Masters' glitzy player walk-ons. But it will be substantially updated.

"The tunnel that was created (at Bercy) in the 2010s was a great innovation," he said.

"We came to the conclusion that a new venue meant a new show. It will be much more vertical, even more based on laser-type lighting.

"It has to be a truly immersive experience."

Pioline shared that he was "confident" the experience would include seeing the top two players in the men's game, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

"The thousand ATP points awarded to the winner will carry weight" in the battle between the Spaniard and the Italian to finish the season at the top of the world rankings, he suggested.

After injuring his ankle at the end of September during his victory at the Japan Open, world No 1 Alcaraz decided to skip the recent Shanghai Masters.

Sinner was forced to withdraw in the third round of the event in China.

With the ATP Finals scheduled in Turin from Nov 9-16, followed by the Davis Cup finals from Nov 18-23 in Bologna, the end-of-season schedule is "clearly busy, but we are confident", Pioline said.

AFP