The ATP Tour will return to Hong Kong within the first week of the 2024 season with the Financial institution of China Hong Kong Tennis Open, which will probably be held from 31 December 2023-7 January 2024 at Victoria Park Tennis Stadium. The match, which will probably be performed for the primary time since 2002, has a wealthy historical past. Dr. Edward Hardisty, who will function referee for the 2024 version, seems again on his reminiscences from an occasion that helped form his profession.

When Dr. Edward Hardisty was lured to Hong Kong half a century in the past, he was excited by the prospect of increasing the minds and experience of locals working in a flourishing business. However an opportunity encounter quickly after his arrival sparked the chance of a lifetime, with Dr. Hardisty as an alternative shifting his focus to a sport requiring him to impose guidelines and restrictions. 

An Englishman by delivery, Dr. Hardisty moved to Hong Kong along with his spouse Janet in 1973 to work with a polytechnic organisation searching for specialists to improve the talents of native staff. Possessing a eager curiosity in tennis, he was thrilled to study Hong Kong was operating a match in November that yr that includes one in every of his all-time favorite gamers.

“A sure gentleman by the title of Rod Laver was taking part in and he was one participant that I would all the time idolised, not solely as a result of he is one other left-hander like myself, however as a result of he was so good,” Dr. Hardisty stated.

Destiny intervened at this level and set Dr. Hardisty on a starkly completely different path — one which allowed him among the best seats at Victoria Park to look at Laver compete and in addition modified his life.

“I wished to go and purchase a ticket to look at the match and this good friend of mine stated, ‘ there isn’t any want to purchase a ticket? Why not work as a linesman as an alternative?’ ” Dr Hardisty stated. “That was it. I attended a course on line-calling and I assumed, ‘Nicely, so long as you realize the foundations of tennis, that is straightforward.’ 

“So I grew to become a linesman and I referred to as serve for Rod Laver that week and labored the ultimate and it was an excellent expertise.”

Fifty years on from that probability encounter, Dr. Hardisty lately joined the Hong Kong, China Tennis Affiliation Board and can function referee within the 2024 Financial institution of China Hong Kong Tennis Open.

Between 1991 and 1999, Dr. Hardisty — who lately refereed the Huafa Properties Zhuhai Championships, which stands because the second leg of the Larger Bay Double — labored as govt director of the organisation.

When the Hardistys departed Hong Kong on the finish of 1999, the South China Morning Publish described them because the “first couple of tennis” given their love of and devotion to the game. Dr. Hardisty has since served in senior officiating positions on the 4 Grand Slams, in Davis Cups and Asian Video games, and in addition loved an prolonged run because the referee of the Rolex Shanghai Masters.

“I used to be so fortunate to have the chance of being in the suitable place on the proper time,” he stated. “It’s clearly an adage that could be very applicable regarding my profession, as a result of if I would stayed within the U.Okay. or in Canada, I’d by no means have had the chance to do it.”

His intrinsic data of the tennis panorama in China, in depth Hong Kong hyperlinks and huge international expertise sparked the strategy to affix the HKCTA board. With Hong Kong changing into one in every of solely three cities within the Asian area to host ATP and WTA Tour occasions alongside Beijing and Tokyo, Dr. Hardisty’s experience is taken into account invaluable.

“My spouse and I’ve saved in contact with numerous tennis individuals over time within the metropolis and up till 2020 we made annual visits again to Hong Kong,” he stated. “I’ve attended tournaments everywhere in the world, so I’ve numerous expertise with operating occasions and officiating. I even have many contacts throughout the tennis spectrum which can be helpful to Hong Kong.”

Dr. Hardisty retains a specific fondness for the Financial institution of China Hong Kong Tennis Open, which returns to the ATP Tour calendar after a hiatus of 21 years to start out the 2024 season. This fondness is scarcely shocking given the greats who’ve excelled in Hong Kong. Grand Slam champions Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi and Michael Chang featured among the many former winners when the occasion was performed beneath the ATP Tour banner.

“Hong Kong has been blessed. If solely that tennis court docket might discuss, it might have rather a lot to say,” Dr. Hardisty stated.

As spectacular because the Victoria Park web site is, fortunately Dr. Hardisty is available to relay a few of his reminiscences of officiating on the match by means of to the final championship in 2002, which was received by former world No.1 Juan Carlos Ferrero over his Spanish countryman Carlos Moya.

Laver performs a starring function in one other favorite reminiscence, with the anecdote serving as a reminder of how considerably skilled sport has modified when it comes to entry to the celebs. Dr. Hardisty remembers that when he first grew to become concerned with the match, a public washroom with showers and altering rooms additionally doubled because the gamers’ locker room.

“Laver was competing within the singles and the doubles remaining and in between matches, he was sitting in that room, in a segregated space, having a cup of tea,” Dr. Hardisty stated. “And folks have been strolling straight by him to go to the bathroom, and he’s simply there having a cup of tea. I imply, it was outstanding. I beloved that.

“I do not assume any of the highest gamers would put up with that type of behaviour now, however you realize, it was water off a duck’s again to Laver. He did not have a care on this planet.” 

Given Dr. Hardisty’s service to tennis in Hong Kong, and the excellence of a profession spent officiating the world’s finest gamers, he was elevated to the HKCTA’s Corridor Of Fame in 2016. He’s delighted to be again working for an organisation that has given him a lot pleasure on what’s one other historic second given the return of elite males’s tennis to Hong Kong.

“I don’t see it as work. It’s a pleasure and I really feel very fortunate to be doing it,” Dr. Hardisty stated.