Pat Cash has delivered a brutal and gloomy message about the state of grass roots tennis in Australia, urging the new Tennis Australia boss Andrew Abdo to work on "saving the heart and soul" of the sport at home.
The former Wimbledon champion says that he was told by one tour player on Monday that "tennis in Aus is gonna die" if there's not a complete change in the tennis authorities' priorities.
While Alex de Minaur was left enthusing at the French Open in Paris on Monday about news of Abdo's appointment, hours after the 47-year-old official's shock resignation as the NRL chief executive, former Wimbledon champion Cash was offering a far more downbeat and pointed message on Instagram.
Abdo has been much lauded for his influence in rugby league, with Australian Rugby League Commission chair Peter V'landys suggesting he'd been so influential that only "Superman and Jesus added together" could possibly replace him.
