“The interesting challenge now is getting someone who might have a different vision for the tournaments, about how they might be run in the future.” There wouldn’t be anyone in New Zealand who has the connections Budge has to recruit top players. Budge worked for the WTA and Tennis Australia before coming to Tennis Auckland, so already had a bulging contact book. Phil Walter/Getty Images Last year's ASB Classic men's finalist Benoit Paire, with Tennis Auckland chairman Simon Vannini. So Vannini confirmed they’ll look to recruit someone from overseas for part of Budge’s job. “For the key part of the tournament director role, around recruiting players, that’s someone we’re likely to look overseas for, because there are a number of tournament directors overseas who might be interested in a role here,” he said.