One of the main aims of this project is to not only find out what the sport's main governing bodies, the ATP (men's pro tour) and WTA (women's pro tour), have in place to support their players' mental health but also to encourage them to improve any existing practices in an effort to destigmatise this topic in tennis.
In both the 2019 and now the 2020 season's official ATP rulebooks, there has been no. explicit mention of mental health or psychological help within the guidelines, initially making it unclear where the organisation stand on the subject and what is on offer to the players. However, the ATP have shown clear concern for their players' mental wellbeing in the past, including recently when ruling on an offence involving Nick Kyrgios. Kyrgios was given a suspended six month probation subject to conditions which include seeking "continued support from a mental coach while competing at ATP Tour events" and "additional support to be sought during the off-season (Nov-Dec) from a professional specializing in behavioral management" showing the organisation's understanding that a player's mental health will have an impact on their on-court behaviour.
To further understand the ATP's stance on mental health in tennis and what they are doing to continue to assist pro players, Game, Set, Mental Health sought a statement from Simon Higson, the organisation's vice president for communications and he provided the following.
‘The ATP is continually looking to build on its duty of care towards its players. The rigours of men’s professional tennis can be extreme and we recognise that adequate support needs to be provided, and this is an area that we are currently analysing and looking to invest and expand on. This year we have started to incorporate mental health awareness as a part of the ATP’s player education programmes. In addition, tournament physicians and physiotherapists on the ATP Tour are in continual contact with players and their support teams throughout the year. In cases where a player were to express psychological concerns, we have an infrastructure that would refer them to the appropriate consultant. In situations where ATP physios and tournament physicians are concerned about a player’s mental, emotional and psychological health, we would recommend that the player seek treatment and assist in the initiation of the appropriate care. Our physios and tournament physicians work very closely with the players and their teams and if they see any warning signs they would take action in getting the player the appropriate help.’