ATP apologises for bizarre draw ceremony

The inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals was created to revitalise tennis to a new generation of fans.

Bengaluru, November 7: The ATP has apologised after the draw ceremony for the Next Gen Finals on Sunday was branded a "disgrace" after female models revealed groupings with letters hidden under their clothing.

The letters A or B were placed on various parts of the bodies of the eight models involved in the draw in Milan, where the flagship tournament for ATP players aged 21 and under begins on Tuesday (November 7).

Next Gen ATP Finals organisers under fire Next Gen ATP Finals organisers under fire

Players were then asked to choose a model in order to discover which group they had been placed in.

One model revealed her letter by lifting up her dress to flash her thigh, while another took off a jacket to expose the letter B on her back.

Former Wimbledon champion Amelie Mauresmo took to Twitter to brand the draw spectacle a "disgrace".

Disgrace... https://t.co/5FnC45wUx7
— AmelieMauresmo (@AmeMauresmo) November 6, 2017

Judy Murray, mother of former world No.1 Andy, described it as "awful".

Awful. https://t.co/ECMf0tA7WC
— judy murray (@JudyMurray) November 6, 2017

In a joint statement with sponsors Red Bull the ATP said it "deeply regretted" the ceremony.

"The ATP and Red Bull apologize for the offence caused by the draw ceremony for the Next GenATP Finals," the statement said. "The intention was to integrate Milan's rich heritage as one of the fashion capitals of the world.

"However, our execution of the proceedings was in poor taste and unacceptable. We deeply regret this and will ensure that there is no repeat of anything like it in the future."

The inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals was created to revitalise tennis to a new generation of fans and will showcase the young players expected to be winning the game's big prizes, once the current golden generation have hung up their rackets.

Our finalists are ready... are you?

Action begins soon at the inaugural #NextGenATP Finals! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/2FSHzQ4wHl
— Next Gen ATP Finals (@nextgenfinals) November 6, 2017

Rather than offer a glimpse of the future, however, the glitzy draw ceremony has been accused of taking the sexism debate back to the 1970s.