Has Federer's treatment crossed the line? (Picture: Getty) Julien Benneteau rocked the tennis boat by challenging the sport's governing bodies over the special treatment reserved for Roger Federer
The newly-retired French player pointed to numerous issues concerning Federer's standing in tennis including: scheduling, appearance fees, conflicts of interest with tournament officials and development of the sport
It's worth noting that several of Benneteau's accounts are word of mouth so it's difficult to take them all at face value, but he does raise some interesting points and issues concerning the state of play within tennis
The scheduling seems an obvious place to start. Benneteau made explosive comments on French radio (Picture: AFP/Getty) Benneteau on scheduling On the same day, Federer played Jan-Lennard Struff – I have nothing against Struff, great guy – Novak Djokovic played Gaël Monfils
We're agreed that on paper, any tournament director would put Djokovic-Monfils on night session at 7:30pm, right? But no
They played at 2:30pm, in 104 degrees. And Federer-Struff played at night. Not a tournament goes by without a gripe over scheduling and it's certainly the case that the 20-time Grand Slam champion gets preferential treatment
Advertisement Advertisement Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley admitted as much in a lengthy statement: 'In terms of players and their appeal, it needs to be said that Roger Federer is a once-in-a-generation player widely regarded as one of the biggest "box office" athletes in the world
'He has been regularly voted Australia's favourite athlete. The fans demand his appearance in the big stadiums and our broadcasters naturally want his matches to air in prime time
Craig Tiley statement on scheduling of Roger Federer's matches When looking at a schedule in tennis, there are so many factors that demand any tournament director's consideration
The players and fans are obviously at the forefront. But even within those groups there are many and varied requirements
These can range from player preferences, injury or general fitness concerns to general broadcast preferences or a major broadcaster's own program needs for their particular market
On top of that there is another layer of considerations including operational logistics requiring the scheduling team to have to make estimations on the likely length and outcome of matches (sometimes days in advance) to the everyday considerations of dealing with changing weather conditions
In terms of players and their appeal, it needs to be said that Roger Federer is a once-in-a-generation player widely regarded as one of the biggest 'box office' athletes in the world
He has been regularly voted Australia's favourite athlete. The fans demand his appearance in the big stadiums and our broadcasters naturally want his matches to air in prime time
And I don't think there's a tournament director in the world who's not going to take those factors into account when setting the schedule
This is the case with all the big names in tennis, and in sport in general. Tennis Australia is justly proud of the success of the Laver Cup, in which we certainly have a share, along with the USTA and other partners
It's been one of the most successful new tennis events in recent times, showing the sport in a new light and attracting new fans
I'd say the success of the Laver Cup has been seen as somewhat a 'disruptor' to the men's game
We run our events to the highest standards and reject as well as challenge any claims to the contrary
We also make no secret about working hard to provide the very best experience for all the players at the Australian Open
We will continue to do this. We want players to love our sport, our event and get appropriately rewarded
We put significant resources into looking after all of them and making the Australian Open, and Melbourne, one of their very favourite places to be
We've prided ourselves on really listening to the players and taking into account their needs and priorities, whether it's the way we operate our transport system, the food we serve, the relaxation and training areas we provide and of course, scheduling matches
There's no way we can please everyone all the time, and everyone knows we do everything we can
'And I don't think there's a tournament director in the world who's not going to take those factors into account when setting the schedule
This is the case with all the big names in tennis, and in sport in general.' Advertisement Advertisement Federer is certainly not alone in getting preferential treatment
Andy Murray dominates Centre Court at Wimbledon, French players are boosted up to Philippe-Chatrier ahead of the likes of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic on occasion, Fabio Fognini even raged at the Next Gen players being given the opportunity to shine on the biggest stages
It's often subjective. And on it's own, it's hard to make a compelling argument that Federer hasn't earned the preferential scheduling he receives
Though favourable scheduling isn't unusual, the move to close to roof ahead of Federer's Australian Open final against Marin Cilic was extraordinary
'I was just not happy at the end of the tournament in Australia because they changed the rules,' Cilic said at the ATP Finals last week
'They were following one way of the rules during the tournament and they had different rules for the finals with closing the roof
Cilic discussed the Australian Open final incident (Picture: AFP/Getty) 'They're reusing two conditions to suit up to be able to close the roof which they didn't have
So, that was the only part that didn't go well by the referee's side. 'I don't think they were going one way or the other, for me or for Roger
I felt that in that part they need to be consistent.' Though Cilic may not point the finger in Federer's direction, the very existence of the Swiss' business relationship with Tiley – something we will return to later – provides a murky undertone
Advertisement Stories detailing Federer's demands over appearance fees also raised eyebrows, particularly his agent chasing double his usual fee to play when chasing the world No
1. It may stink of greed for a man who has already made more than $120million in prize money alone, but is it fundamentally wrong? Not really… Federer and his agent have been questioned (Picture: Getty) Tennis sits in a weird space in the sporting world
In football, for example, you have leagues which teams are obliged to complete their fixtures but boxing allows fighters to chase as much money as they like by agreeing big fights, totally determined by fees and percentage splits between the boxers
Tennis could perhaps be considered as being somewhere in between. There is obviously a structured set of events that take place throughout the calendar – similarly to how fixtures in football are placed – but there is not a requirement for players to turn up to every event – far from it
Equally, tournaments are part of the ATP Tour but also do, in many cases, fend for themselves, and can look to attract the top talent by offering them huge financial incentives
MORE: Roger Federer responds to special treatment claims MORE: Novak Djokovic defends Roger Federer over 'special treatment' on ATP Tour So in the case of Tony Godsick allegedly chasing in excess of $2million back in February, with Federer chasing the world No
1 spot, it was up to Dubai or Rotterdam to cave in to those demands. Rotterdam did
He played there and returned to the top of the rankings – and he no doubt brought added attention to a field lacking true star quality
Advertisement Now, it's one thing for tournaments to offer extra money to lure players to their events, but another to change the playing field to benefit a single competitor
This is what former Paris Masters chief Jean-François Caujolle sensationally admitted to in a recent interview with L'Equipe
Federer had not played in Paris-Bercy since 2003 and in an attempt to entice him back to the French capital at the end of the season, Caujolle essentially decided to completely change the surface upon the Swiss' suggestion
Caujolle poses with Federer after winning the 2011 Paris Masters v Tsonga (Picture: AFP/Getty) Altering the conditions to suit one player doesn't exactly smack of fairness but equally, the tournament approached Federer – according to Caujolle's account – desperate to lure him back and sought his advice
Should we really blame him if they were so desperate to have him back that they'd completely change their surface? And is he really in the wrong if he told them honestly what it would take for him to return to Paris-Bercy? Only if he also pointed a gun at Caujolle's head while making the request… It isn't a great look for tournaments to pander to one player, and it's a particularly bad look when retired tournament directors make these revelations in such a blase fashion some 10 years later, but it's hard to really pin down Federer for blame in this instance either
Arguably Benneteau's most interesting challenge is aimed towards Tiley's business relationship with Federer and Godsick
Benneteau on Tiley He's the Australian Open tournament director. And the man is paid by Roger Federer's agent for the Laver Cup
Over the last two Australian Opens, (Federer) played 14 matches, because he was champion and finalist
And he played 12 or 13 of his 14 matches in the night session. Tennis, at the end of the day, is a business
But the lines are certainly blurred – or at least open to misinterpretation – when tournament officials jump into bed, in a strictly financial sense, with active players
It would be difficult to ever truly prove that Federer was exerting pressure on tournament directors, such as Tiley, for added benefits but the mere existence of their business relationship should be under scrutiny
The whole situation is new ground for the sport but it sets a dangerous precedent of the future, with tennis' integrity at stake
Whether there have been any unethical underhand dealings regarding Federer or not, it doesn't really matter
Blurring the lines between players and administrators – particularly ones with such a wide reach as Tiley – should attract questions
Is Tiley's relationship with Federer problematic? (Picture: Getty) Federer is within his rights to start an exhibition event
But the waters are muddied when involving someone like Tiley in its organisation, let alone paying him (if Benneteau's allegations are true)
Tiley, in his role of Tennis Australia chief should be helping to provide a solution to the Davis Cup on behalf of the vociferous Aussie fans
How can he be expected to do that while pushing the ATP Cup and also promoting yet another team event at the Laver Cup? He sidestepped the question at the launch of the ATP Cup on Thursday of whether the Davis Cup should move to the slot currently occupied by the Laver Cup and vacuously uttered: 'What's really important for us is the Davis Cup is a viable competition and a great competition
These events are great for the audiences, great for the fans.' Tiley has come under fire (Picture: Getty) Of course, Tiley having his fingers in many pies is not Federer's fault
But it points to a wider issue in tennis where it's becoming increasingly unclear who is batting for who
Having Tiley allegedly on Federer and Godsick's bankroll just adds to the already complicated mess of having governing bodies such as Tennis Australia and the United States Tennis Association (USTA) investing heavily in a non-sanctioned event
His comments that Federer deserves special treatment do probably ring true, but because of the exchanging of cash among themselves it is opened up to scrutiny
Has Federer crossed the line? (Picture: Getty) The solution is not an easy one, but some form of regulation that stops active players paying governing bodies would be a good start
If direct legislation is problematic then perhaps the formation of a regulatory body to monitor, investigate and even approve these relationships would provide more peace of mind
As Djokovic suggested at the beginning of the year, a players' union is also a good idea; a body that fights for their rights is much better than the current mish-mashed joint defence of tournaments and the stars themselves – two parties that are so often on opposing sides of the fence
But to the same end, the players shouldn't be paying tennis administrators, it simply creates a conflict of interest
This is where, I believe, Federer has crossed the line. Again, this is not to accuse Federer of any wrongdoing per se, I'm almost certain there is no malicious intention from his end, but this style of partnership is not a healthy look for tennis
While the Swiss continues to perform at the highest level, his close involvement with supposed unbias officials in the tennis world causes an obvious problem – it's time for the sport to provide a solution
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