The winds of change rifling through tennis whipped at the ageing knees of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray on Wednesday when it was confirmed the ATP World Tour Finals will say goodbye to London in 2020 after 12 years of packed houses, high drama and an undeniable sense of gathering ennui, before settling in for a five-year stay in Turin.

The move was not much of a secret but it almost certainly draws a line under an era. As Federer, Nadal and Murray wrestle with the timing of their retirements, only Novak Djokovic of their golden age probably will continue to be dominant during and after the switch of cities. The Serb, in a trough at the moment, perhaps will still be world No 1 and owner of more majors than Federer, but uncertainty is coursing all through the sport.

Justin Gimelstob’s conviction puts onus on ATP to find moral fibre | Kevin Mitchell Read more

It is the perfect time to leave the party – for London and maybe, reluctantly, for the man who created the phenomenon at the O 2 Arena in North Greenwich, Chris Kermode.

Kermode’s term as the chief executive of the ATP looks to be winding down in curious circumstances. Against expectations, he was voted out last month after five successful years by a three-man players’ council faction – inspired by Djokovic, its president – that included the newly shamed Justin Gimelstob, who has long struggled to hide his desire to succeed the popular Londoner.

Those ambitions crashed spectacularly in a Los Angeles court on Monday when Gimelstob was convicted of attacking a former friend in the street. His future in the game is uncertain; Kermode’s is preordained by the player-council vote, although there may yet be more twists to the tale.

The odds on the ATP retaining Gimelstob’s services after he was sentenced to three years’ probation and 60 days of community service, as well as a spell of anger-management, are considerably longer than his own prospects of being welcomed back to the Tennis Channel as a commentator – or Kermode engineering a comeback. The integrity of the player council’s vote to oust him suffered considerably with Gimelstob’s conviction.

Kermode will be remembered for several reforms and innovations, chief among them transforming the end-of-year tournament by the Thames from an obligation into a money-spinner to rival the majors in revenue and drawing power.

However, he and the ATP will realise they probably squeezed as much out of the finals as was possible, putting on a day-night show for two lots of nearly 20,000 fans every day for a week since 2009, an annual event that had begun to pall a little since its inception in 1970. The finalists were often tired at the end of a long season and some matches were not as competitive as would be expected. It desperately needs freshening up and the move to Italy could provide that.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Andy Murray won the ATP Finals at the O2 in 2016. Photograph: Julian Finney/Getty Images

Murray was always the big draw in London, winning it in 2016 at the eighth attempt, while Federer, Nadal (who resented finishing the season on hard-court rather than his favoured clay), Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka brought special stardust.

The finals will be played in Italy’s biggest indoor stadium, the Pala Alpitour, from 2021, initially with the support of the current sponsor, Nitto, and, with the financial backing of the Italian government, enabling record prize money of £11.45m. “Italy provides us with one of the strongest and most established tennis markets in Europe,” Kermode said, “and has a proven track record for hosting world-class tennis events with the Internazionali d’Italia in Rome, as well as the ATP Finals in Milan.”

Turin also has geography on its side. There was little enthusiasm among the players to travel much further than Europe at the end of a season, which ruled out New York, east Asia and Australia.

Djokovic, who has been among the most vocal advocates for a move, described the tournament as “the biggest and most prestigious event we have at the ATP. It’s a tournament that has historically moved around. I’m very excited to see it move to Turin. It’s still a few years away but I know that the players will be very excited to compete there – and I also hope to be part of what will be a very special event.”