“Welcome to the circus,” he says, quickly changing tone, in what is still a distinctive South African accent. He later reveals he caught an Uber into work today, after being up until 3am the night before.
It’s a hazard of the job, he explains, when you are dealing with international tennis stars and their demanding entourages across different time zones. It’s especially true given the Tennis Australia chief executive insists on a personal touch with almost everyone.
“I personalize the relationship as much as possible,” Tiley tells AFR Weekend. “I know what matters to Rafa [Rafael Nadal], I know what matters to Serena [Williams] and Roger [Federer] and now what matters to [Jannik] Sinner, [Carlos] Alcaraz and [Iga] Swiatek.”
It’s been for the man who has survived a decade in the top job. But, typical of his style, he is targeting another record crowd and record revenue for the business this year.
Now he faces a new threat from the investment into tennis by Saudi Arabia – which upended the world of golf with the LIV Tour – over the potential of hosting of a new Masters 1000 tournament beginning next year in January, two weeks before the Australian Open.
Instead of the typical long lunch at his favourite restaurant, we settle on a makeshift breakfast of coffee and croissants inside the big glass box, which serves as Tennis Australia’s headquarters, overlooking Rod Laver Arena. In the distance, two workers scrub the roof on the stadium.
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