AO boss Tiley set to leave for USTA: Report

The worst-kept secret in tennis is due to come true next week if an Australian website is to be believed.

Longtime Australian Open TD and CEO of Tennis Australia Craig Tiley is set to abandon Oz to take over a supremo of the American federation in New York.

The rumour had  been hovering around the traps all during last months AO, with Tiley coyly refusing to elaborate.

But the firstserve.com.au website broke the spell with a report that the deal is due to be announced next week.

The current USTA CEO Lew Sherr left for a position with the New York Mets baseball team.

South African Tiley has run the show at Melbourne Park for two decades, serving as both CEO and TD in the tennis corporate suite.

“One thing we can tell you tonight is the confirmation of Craig [Tiley’s] announcement as the new CEO of the USTA will take place next week,” Brett Phillips said Monday on The First Serve Live radio show.

“Back in January, we were right in the cut and thrust of the bubble of the Australian Open… there was a lot of speculation. Everyone felt that this was a done deal, but we haven’t yet had official word, but we are going to have official word pretty shortly.”

Under Tiley the Open has been bloated to a three-week event, with the former tennis coach drawing fire recently from the WTA after suggesting that he would like to see women’s play the best of five sets at the Grand Slams from the quarter-finals on.