In the past, you’ve talked about wanting a 500 event. A handful of events were upgraded starting next year. Do you see Almaty still fitting into this dream?
UTEMURATOV: Yes. We had these attempts before, but logistically wise, they preferred the first half of the year. We will still keep on working on this and have two potential ways how to achieve it. The first one is to combine two 250s. That was our proposal with ATP previously, and we’ll keep that in mind for the future. We’re also trying to find a tournament that is ready to sell. But the market is not that big.
Are there any lessons from your four-year run in Astana that you’ve applied to getting Almaty off the ground with fewer obstacles?
POLSKIY: The main lesson Is that we’re in the service business. We have to serve players, fans, sponsors, coaches, everybody. And that’s why we approach it not just from the usual technical side, so that everybody understands that they’re part of the big event. Every detail matters.
And for us, it’s also very important to activate the sponsors so they not just have their name on the banners. By doing the activities with people, they get the access to their direct customers because it’s a win-win situation.
As someone who is not only the president of KTF but also the vice president of the ITF, what do you think is one area in professional tennis that disappoints you?
UTEMURATOV: My biggest disappointment is what has happened with the Davis Cup in recent years. Kosmos initially made very beautiful proposals, promised a lot. Eventually, they couldn’t deliver on that and to some extent really damaged the Davis Cup, Now, we have to restore and rebuild it. We’re working a lot to make it interesting and a tournament that players do not want to miss.
