Some former tennis stars leave the sport with a trophy cabinet; others stay on to help decide how tennis is run. Their second careers can look very different: one might build a players’ union, another lead a national federation, and another manage a major tournament. Here are some of the clearest examples—and what their playing experience brought to the job.
What does it mean to become a tennis administrator?
“Administrator” is a broad label. It can mean setting policy at a governing body, managing a players’ organization, running a tournament or overseeing a national team. These jobs are not interchangeable: a tour chair helps shape a circuit’s direction, while a tournament director is responsible for a particular event.
Former players can bring a valuable view of the sport’s working realities: travel, scheduling, prize money and the difference between a rule on paper and what happens on court. But experience as a competitor does not automatically make someone an effective executive. The strongest examples combine that perspective with negotiation, management and a willingness to listen to people whose needs differ from their own.
Players who moved into tennis leadership
| Former player | Administrative role | Why the move matters |
|---|---|---|
| Billie Jean King | Founding president of the WTA | Helped create a unified organization for women players |
| Andrea Gaudenzi | ATP chairman since 2020 | Brings a former player’s perspective to tour-level governance |
| Katrina Adams | USTA chairman and president, 2015–2018 | Led the United States governing body after a professional playing career |
| Chris Kermode | ATP executive chairman and president, 2014–2019 | Moved from professional tennis and tournament work into tour leadership |
| Richard Krajicek | Tournament director of the Rotterdam event | Applied his experience as a champion to running a long-standing tournament |
| Todd Martin | CEO of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, 2014–2020 | Helped lead a tennis institution after his playing career |
Billie Jean King: building a players’ organization
King’s administrative work began while she was still an active player. In 1973, she helped bring women players together to form the Women’s Tennis Association and became its first president. The need was practical and immediate: individual players had limited leverage when negotiating with tournaments and tennis authorities, while a united group could press for better conditions and a stronger place in the sport.
That organizing instinct was closely tied to her experience on court. King had seen how pay and opportunities differed for women, and she became one of the most visible advocates for equal treatment. The WTA gave players a lasting structure for representing shared interests, rather than relying on one famous voice at a time. Her role shows how administration can start not with an office or a title, but with the work of persuading people to act together.
Andrea Gaudenzi: from the tour to its boardroom
Italian former professional Andrea Gaudenzi became ATP chairman in 2020. He reached the top 20 during his playing career and won three tour-level singles titles. As chairman, his work is about the ATP’s overall direction and governance, rather than captaining a team or running a single event.
The shift from player to chair brings a different kind of test. A tour has to balance the interests of top-ranked stars, lower-ranked players, tournaments and commercial partners. Gaudenzi’s own time competing gives him first-hand knowledge of the player side, but the job also requires negotiation across groups that do not always want the same thing. That is a common challenge for former players in leadership: representing the wider sport, not just the experience they personally had.
Katrina Adams: leading a national governing body
Katrina Adams had a successful professional career, particularly in doubles, before moving into tennis leadership in the United States. She served as chair of the USTA board and president from 2015 to 2018, becoming the first African American to hold the role.
The USTA’s responsibilities reach far beyond the professional tour. They include supporting community tennis, developing players, running national competitions and staging the US Open. Leading an organization with that range means weighing elite competition alongside participation and access. Adams’s career gave her a competitor’s understanding of the sport, while her presidency placed her in a position to help guide its broader American structure.
Chris Kermode: from playing and events to the ATP
Chris Kermode played professional tennis before making his career in tournament management. He became tournament director at Queen’s Club and later moved into senior ATP leadership, serving as the tour’s executive chairman and president from 2014 to 2019.
His path illustrates how a former player can enter administration through the event side of the sport. A tournament director deals with the practical details fans see—scheduling, facilities, player services and the daily running of competition. Tour leadership brings a much wider brief, involving the interests of tournaments and players across the calendar. Experience in event operations can be useful there, but the scale and politics of the job are different.
Richard Krajicek and Todd Martin: running tennis institutions
Richard Krajicek, the former Wimbledon champion, became tournament director of the Rotterdam indoor event, now known as the ABN AMRO Open. The job is a reminder that administration often happens out of the spotlight. A tournament director has to shape the field, work with sponsors and organizers, and deliver a strong event year after year. A former champion may understand what players value, but must also consider the needs of the event and its audience.
Todd Martin took another route after reaching the top four in the world as a player. He became CEO of the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island, serving from 2014 to 2020. The institution combines a museum, historic grounds and tennis events, so the work involves both preserving the game’s history and sustaining a modern organization. Martin’s appointment showed that a post-playing career can involve stewardship of tennis culture as well as competition.
Why former players take on these jobs
There is no single path from the tour to administration. Some players, like King, organize fellow competitors around a shared need. Others join a governing body, take charge of a tournament or lead an institution. Their playing careers can help them spot problems that might be missed by someone who has never lived a tour schedule or negotiated as an athlete.
At the same time, administrators must make decisions for a wider group. A player may naturally focus on competitors’ interests; a tournament director must also consider staff, spectators and partners. Good leadership depends on understanding those competing responsibilities and explaining decisions clearly. That is why a strong tennis administrator needs more than a famous name: practical experience, judgment and the ability to work with people who see the sport differently.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was the first president of the WTA?
Billie Jean King became the WTA’s first president when women players formed the organization in 1973. She helped give players a shared platform to represent their interests.
Is an ATP chairman the same as an ATP CEO?
No. The chairman leads the board and helps set the organization’s direction, while a CEO is responsible for executive management and day-to-day operations. The positions have distinct responsibilities, even when they work closely together.
What does a tennis tournament director do?
A tournament director oversees the event’s planning and delivery, including player arrangements, scheduling and coordination with organizers and partners. The exact responsibilities vary by tournament.
Do former players automatically make good administrators?
No. Playing experience can offer useful perspective, but leadership also calls for management skills, negotiation and the ability to balance the needs of different groups across the sport.
Final Thoughts
From Billie Jean King’s work organizing players to Andrea Gaudenzi’s role in ATP governance, former competitors have helped shape tennis well beyond the baseline. Their influence depends on the job they take: building a players’ voice, leading a national body, directing a tournament or preserving the sport’s history. The common thread is a second career spent turning first-hand experience into decisions that affect the game and the people who play it.
