ASB Tennis Classic tournament director on a mission in Paris

Venus Williams of USA is congratulated by tournament director Karl Budge at the ASB Tennis Arena.

I find ASB Classic tournament director Karl Budge in the Player lounge under centre court at Roland Garros.

He's chatting to his former boss at Tennis Australia Craig Tiley, who just happens to be one of the most powerful figures in the sport.

Budge is on his annual trip to the French Open. He's only in Paris for a few days, for ATP meetings, but of more importance is the opportunity to be seen, to press the flesh with player agents, players, their coaches and managers.

He'll return to Europe for Wimbledon a couple of weeks later, racking up more frequent flying miles on his third trip to Europe in six weeks. He will go through the same process again. The travel takes a toll, even for a guy with more energy than an energiser battery. But the rewards are worth it if he gets the signatures he's chasing.

His perseverance has paid off for the women's ASB Classic attracting the likes of Ana Ivanovic, Caroline Wozniacki and Venus Williams and most recently his crowning achievement, the biggest name in the women's game, Serena Williams.

For an International series tournament with miniscule prize money and minimum ranking points in the first week of the year, Budge's achievement in lifting it to world class status is staggering.

The challenge now for Budge and perhaps his greatest challenge is to achieve a similar result with the men's ASB Classic. But it's a much more demanding task the week before the first Grand Slam of the year, the Australian Open.

This year only three top 20 ranked players chose to play ATP tournaments the week before the year's first Grand Slam, two of them came to Auckland and one to Sydney while Budge also signed Juan Martin del Potro who succumbed to injury prior to the tournament's start.

Budge secured top Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga the previous year but for the most part as good as the players who regularly turn up at the ASB men's Classic, they are not the household names in the sport.

What becomes apparent as soon as we sit down to chat is Budge has the contacts, garnered from many years working at Tennis Australia and subsequently the WTA (women's tour) overseas before returning to Auckland to head up the ASB Classic.

I try to start our interview but Budge is immediately distracted as ATP head Chris Kermode comes over and the pair exchange greetings. So what men are you chasing this year I ask?

Budge glances across to see Rafa Nadal's coach Carlos Moya walk past. He sits down behind us next to Uncle Toni, Nadal's long-time coach who will step down at the end of the year.
Have you tried for Rafa?

"Yes I have had the conversation, again, and it's a no". Roger Federer also won't be coming to the ASB Classic, but it doesn't stop Budge from asking the question, as he does of all the elite players.

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"You start off with your Roger's and Rafa's and work back from there. You always have an idea on the future. There is a great group of young talent coming through in the men's game led by Sascha Zverev who is a superstar and will be top 10 by the time the ASB Classic comes around. (Dominic) Thiem will be a chance of winning this tournament, Nick's (Kyrgios) obviously playing very well. We have to combat the trend of not playing the week before e a Grand Slam and that's my big barrier at the moment.

What about Novak Djokovic I ask? He has a new coach in Andre Agassi, a different team around him, could he finally be lured to change his schedule and come to Auckland?

"We are asking the question, I want the best possible players playing, no one's off limits and I just want to get into the conversation, I can't do a lot if's it a blanket no thanks and we are having that conversation at the moment (with Novak's team). There's no one you can throw at me where we are not having a conversation." Budge said.

While most top 20 players prefer to get to Melbourne to practice ahead of the Australian Open rather than play the week before, many also have their price and will play given the right sort of appearance fee. However Budge points out money is something they can't really compete with.

"The dollars argument only applies to a couple of players, I could offer Roger Federer multiple millions of dollars and he won't play, likewise Rafa and his team over there simply won't play. It's not a dollars and sense argument in the same way it wasn't with Serena.

"Novak's in the same bracket, we will never match what he gets from overseas, so we need to convince them their best schedule is to play Auckland in preparation for Melbourne."

"If it comes down to money we are not going to win those discussions, we have done it pretty well as a tournament the last few years. We have to be smarter, more nimble. We've got some ideas and we are dangling the carrots out in ways that are probably unique. We have to do what we can to compete."

Nick Kyrgios is another target; yes the temperamental but super talented Aussie who used to be coached by Tennis New Zealand's new high performance manager Simon Rea. It's a delicate one for Budge who is wary about ruffling feathers across the Tasman.

"It's a conversation I have had with them, where do the anger levels sit if I make a play with Nick? I have had a chat to his agent. His agent is the same agent as Venus Williams and obviously that relationship is as strong as it gets, and I have made a play with him. It would take a lot for him to come and play outside of Australia. Maybe he needs to have a bust up with Tennis Australia again and then maybe we can be in the running."

I sensed during our interview that Budge who has had built some close relationships over the years with some powerful people on the women's tour, has shifted his focus. Not in the sense that he won't chase the best possible women's field for the ASB Classic, but in his ever present quest to be the best, he is desperate to achieve similar success with the men's tournament.

"We certainly won't die wondering. I don't understand some of the push back you get at times when you come out and say you want to get these players, I have no interest in assembling a mediocre field. I want to put together the best possible field and I will start with Federer every year and will work back from there. Five years ago it was unrealistic that we would get Serena Williams playing in Auckland and that happened this year, five years ago it was unrealistic that we would get Serena, Venus and Caroline playing in Auckland, and we did this year.

"We have to keep trying. We have shown we can do it with Tsonga, Ferrer has done it numerous times and so it does happen we have to make sure we keep making the right noises to the right people and make sure we are in the position to strike when the time is right."

I didn't think Karl Budge would ever get Serena Williams to play at the ASB Classic, if anyone can get one of the biggest names in the men's game to Auckland, he will.

Matt Brown is in Paris thanks to Emirates Airline