The tired Alex de Minaur crashed from the French Open on Thursday, calling for a shorter tennis calendar, warning that not taking action could lead to players being physically and mentally burnout.
The season began with the United Cup Mixed Team Tournament in December 33 days after the Davis Cup final ended in Spain, and the harsh nature of the circuit has been in the harsh spotlight in recent years.
“No one has a solution,” De Minauer told Alexander Bublik after his second round defeat, 2-6, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2. “But the solution is simple. Do you want to shorten your schedule? What’s not normal is that for the past three years I took a vacation two days after the Davis Cup, went straight to the preseason and then headed straight to the new season again.
“Once you start, it won’t finish until November 24th, so there’s no end. The way it’s structured… I had to deal with it. I’m still dealing with it.
“The solution is for you to shorten (tours), because they just burn out mentally, so players’ careers are short and shorter, because they have too much tennis.”
Two-time French open finalist Casperude said after finishing the Shock Ex on Wednesday, ATP’s ranking system was like a “rat race” and players felt forced to compete in mandatory events on the men’s tour, even if they were injured.
The seventh species, defeated by an unseeded Nuno Borges, said he was struggling with knee pain.
Asked if the tennis calendar took the time to make it difficult for an injury to heal completely, the 26-year-old Norwegian said that if they skipped a mandatory event, the player’s rankings will be a hit.
“Well, that’s like a rat race when it comes to rankings,” Roode said. “I feel obligated to play under certain rules that ATP has set in mandatory events. If you don’t show up and play, you feel like you’ll lose a lot.
Rude also said players’ year-end bonuses will be reduced by 25% if they miss a mandatory event.
“You’re forcing players to show up to someone injured or sick when that’s not something I think is very fair,” he said.
Reuters contacted ATP for comment.