Just along the river from London's economic heart -- the City of London -- lies the O2 Arena, which over the last week has hosted a tennis tournament which has had record crowds as fans forget about the economic gloom that has gripped both Britain and Europe over the last few years.

"When people are not doing very well, they need something to entertain them and this is a great distraction," said Dakin Sloss, a tennis fan from Silicon Valley in California, who attended the ATP World Tour finals.

Place a five kilometer ring around the now iconic setting, which was specially constructed to herald the arrival of the 21st Century, and within it would fall inner London boroughs where unemployment is well into double digits, double that for the under 25s, and deprivation is very apparent.

Britain officially crept out of its double dip recession last quarter, but like much of the Europe, is gripped by the consequences of sluggish growth and demand.

Dire outlook

But within tthe O2 Arena's confines there is no sense of austerity.

When the ATP World Tour Finals came to the British capital for the first time in 2009, arguably the economic outlook was even more dire, but during its fourth staging this year the tournament celebrated its millionth paying customer and in many ways is a beacon for the heady success currently being enjoyed by tennis despite the global downturn.

In fact all of the 15 sessions of the 2012 edition, including afternoon play, have been played to near full 17,000 plus capacity, despite entrance being upwards of $90 apiece.

But it's not just London, coming off unprecedented attendances at the 2012 Olympics, and with their own "home town" global superstar in the form of Andy Murray, where tennis has pulled in the big revenues.

"The ATP and its 62 tournaments are now generating more than half a billion dollars annually," Brad Drewett, the tour's executive chairman and president, told CNN.

"We are in our strongest financial position ever and we have the biggest and best group of corporate partners ever involved in the game," he added.

Increased revenues

According to the ATP, commercial revenues have increased 165 per cent since 2009 and during finals week, Ricoh extended its support while the big announcement saw title sponsor Barclays put its name to the tournament through 2015 with London confirmed as the venue in a two-year extension.

Six-time grand slam champion Boris Becker believes that the global appeal of the sport has helped it ride the economic storm.

"You have great stars in a truly international sport, not based on one continent, and whether you are from Asia, Africa, the Americas or Europe, you have your favorites," said Becker, who is working for Barclays on their Ball Kids initiative.

"Tennis has a long history, we have survived wars and many different kinds of problems and in difficult times we come through, "Becker added.

Attendances on the ATP have remained steady at 4.4 million each year since 2009, excluding the four grand slams and Davis Cup matches, and television audiences have increased, with 800 million viewers plus four millions visitors to the official ATP Tour website each month.

Neil Harman, tennis correspondent of The Times of London, believes the rivalry at the top of the men's game, with Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal being joined by Murray to form an invincible "Big Four", is responsible for the sport's resilience in the face of difficult times.

Golden opportunity

"Tennis has this golden opportunity with the players you have got at the top of the game. We didn't have that five years ago," the Times journalist told CNN.