In 2024, The professional tennis season officially came to a close on December 22nd, when Joao Fonseca defeated Lerner Tien to win the title at the ATP Next Generation Finals in Saudi Arabia.
The 2025 season began on December 27th in Australia for the United Cup. Fonseca and Tien returned to the court on December 30 for tournaments in Australia and Hong Kong, respectively.
2024 U.S. Open doubles champion Jordan Thompson said at the time, “I don’t know how the ’25 season is going to start in ’24.” “I mean, it’s a joke.”
Fonseca and Tien were without a sanctioned event for about four weeks until the Next Generation Finals, but the five-day return to action underscores how little time professional tennis players have to rest, recover and prepare for the new season. There was just over a month between the Billie Jean King Cup, Davis Cup and United Cup. The WTA Finals and ATP Finals were held in mid-November.
The length of the season and the unrelenting globe-trotting nature of the tour have long been a source of frustration among players, and those frustrations have intensified in recent years. Alex de Minaur said his early withdrawal from this year’s French Open was due to “burnout”. Iga Swiatek criticized demands for an “overcrowded” schedule when she missed the spring Billie Jean King Cup qualifiers. At the China Open in late September, five of the 12 scheduled matches ended with early withdrawals.
Several players, including Francis Tiafoe, Daniel Collins, Jack Draper and Daria Kasatkina, ended their seasons earlier this year due to injuries and mental fatigue.
Kasatkina said in a social media post: “The truth is, I’ve hit a wall and I can’t go on anymore. I need a break. A break from the monotony of life on tour, suitcases, results, pressure, the same faces (sorry girls) and everything that comes with this life.” “My schedule has been so demanding that I’ve reached a breaking point mentally and emotionally, but sadly I’m not alone.”
The debate over the length and intensity of the tennis season will continue as the 2025 season wraps up and players quickly turn their attention to 2026. The big question is: Will anything change in the near future?
top ranked american Taylor Fritz had a breakout season in 2024. After reaching the quarterfinals at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, she reached her first major final at the US Open. By the end of the season, he had won two ATP titles, reached four finals (including the ATP Finals), won an Olympic bronze medal in doubles with Tommy Paul, and achieved a new career-high ranking of No. 4.
But there’s no time to celebrate. And in fact, he performed so well that his season was only extended as he earned an invitation to the ATP Finals at the end of the year and also played in the Davis Cup Finals.
“There’s no offseason, and if you’re a top player you actually have even less of an offseason,” Fritz told ESPN in the spring. “If your season ends in Paris (early November) like most players do, you get a month and a half, maybe a little more, maybe an extra week before the season starts, but if you play the Tour Finals and the Davis Cup you actually get an extra three weeks. And if you play the United Cup like I did, you start earlier because you’re a top player.”
In Fritz’s case, it was about three weeks from the end of the 2024 season to the start of the 2025 season. He said he would have to return home at the end of November and leave for Australia on December 21st. And as he pointed out, there was a lot to do in the meantime.
“People don’t understand that you have to train during that time,” Fritz says. “The off-season is when you train, so if you have three weeks, you just take one week (to relax or go on vacation) and that’s it. You have one week off throughout the year. It’s ridiculous.”
This is a critical period, as many players are taking time to implement the changes they desire, both technically and in terms of coaching staff. But is it more important than having the opportunity to rest and recover after a physically demanding season on the road? That’s for each player to decide.
For some people, the off-season, no matter how short, is one of the only times they get to spend at home. This is especially true for Australians who spend most of the season in a suitcase.
“For me, when I get back to Australia, I just want to go to the beach and relax and take a two-week break from the racket,” Thompson said at the start of the 2025 season. “But I still have to do a lot of physical things to stay in shape. I literally have three weeks until I’m back in tournament mode. With this much physical time off, I can’t afford to fail.”
Will players find time to take a break during the season? Former world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, 38, only competed in major tournaments this summer, missing all ATP tournaments in June, July and August. His goals were to win a record-breaking 25th major title and prioritize spending time with his family. But he’s also in an unusual position. He says he doesn’t care about his rankings at this stage in his career, and with more than $190 million in winnings on the court, he has little to worry about financially.
The tour requires players to compete in a certain number of tournaments each year. Qualifying ATP players must compete in all four majors, eight Masters 1000-level tournaments and five 500-level tournaments, including the tournament held after the US Open. In addition to competing in 10 1000-level tournaments and six 500-level events, the top WTA players must also compete in a Grand Slam. Seven of the 1000 level tournaments now last 12 days, and several tournaments have recently been extended from one week.
Players may be excused from majors or 1000-level tournaments due to injury, but if a WTA player does not meet the criteria for 6 tournaments in a 500-level event, ranking points will be deducted. In addition to current No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and No. 2 Swiatek, top 10 players including Coco Gauff, Amanda Anisimova and Madison Keys also lost points at the end of the 2024 season after missing the required number of tournaments. Swiatek, who was in first place at the time, fell to second place. ATP players who do not meet the criteria may have their bonus pool income reduced at the end of the season.
Many top players have been vocal about the impact of schedule length and requirements, especially since they often reach the end of the tournaments they play.
Swiatek, who played in one of the injury-shortened matches at the China Open in September, was quick to blame her schedule after her opponent Camila Osorio withdrew after the first set. She told reporters that she would likely “have to pick and choose some tournaments and skip them even though they are mandatory” in the future.
“WTA, with all these mandatory rules, things have gotten pretty crazy for us,” Swiatek said. “I don’t think any top player can play six 500 tournaments and actually accomplish this. It’s impossible to cram that into a schedule.
“I think we have to be smart about it. Unfortunately, we don’t care about the rules and just think about what’s healthy for us. Yeah, it’s difficult.”
Swiatek lost his next match and reached the quarterfinals in Wuhan, but missed out on elimination in the group stage of the WTA Finals.
The WTA and other officials in the sport have repeatedly pointed to expanding the 1000-level tournament as part of a way to ensure equal prize money in tournaments with men.
“We always hear people asking for more prize money, more prize money. This is what the Tour needs to do: increase the prize money to extend the duration of the tournament,” Anne Keosavon, a former player and captain of Britain’s Billie Jean King Cup team, said in a recent interview with Sky Sports. “So, what do you want?”
World No. 3 Gauff disagreed with that claim, but said it would be “impossible” to meet all the requirements in any given year.
“From a business perspective, it might make some sense, but from a player health perspective, I don’t really agree with it,” Gauff said at the China Open. “I’ve been playing tennis basically as much as I can, but it’s impossible to hit six 500s in a row. It’s just impossible.”
Gauff competed in three 500-level tournaments in 2025, along with Sabalenka, Swiatek and Anisimova. It is played in four keys. However, this does not mean that the number of matches has decreased. Swiatek played in a tour-leading 80 games this season. Sabalenka competed in ’76 (as did WTA Finals champion Elena Rybakina), Gauff in ’65, Anisimova in ’63 and Keys in ’53.
At the Shanghai Masters in October, the top players showed their full potential. Many complained of the extreme heat and humidity, while others were feeling the weight of the long season.
World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz withdrew before the tournament started due to a left ankle injury. Second-ranked Jannik Sinner withdrew from the third round due to cramps. Djokovic vomited during his round of 32 match and needed treatment for a back injury he sustained in his semi-final loss. In the final, Valentin Bachelot, who was ranked 204th in the world at the time and was the 9th alternate in the qualifying draw, faced off against his cousin Arthur Rinderknek, who was ranked 40th at the time. While it’s certainly an incredible story, it probably wasn’t the title showdown that ATP was hoping for at one of its signature events.
last month, ATP has announced that it will add a Masters 1000-level tournament to its schedule in Saudi Arabia as early as 2028. This brings the total number of categories to 10, 9 of which are required. (Monte Carlo remains an optional event.) It remains unclear when the tournament will take place in an already packed schedule, or if women will also participate.
In recent years, the French Open, Australian Open, and US Open have added one match day to their main tournaments and moved their opening days from Mondays to Sundays. Several players in New York voiced their opposition as it was held for the first time at this year’s U.S. Open.
Jessica Pegula, who is currently ranked 6th, said, “I don’t really like it.” “I don’t know why they had to extend it even more. Well, I can see why they did it, because they could sell tickets for an extra day.”
Brad Stein, Tommy Paul’s longtime coach, acknowledged that the debate over season length is nothing new. He’s been coaching at the professional level since 1990, when he started working with Jim Courier, and he’s heard those words over the years.
While Stein certainly believes that the ATP and WTA should eliminate the distinction of “obligation” in tournaments and ensure players have a week or two off after a tournament, he also believes that players should not be “paranoid” about losing ranking points and should skip tournaments whenever they feel they need a break.
“No one has to play. You can rest whenever you want,” he said.
Additionally, he believes many of the players negate their concerns by playing in high-paying exhibitions during the offseason and other schedules.
“There doesn’t seem to be a shortage of players who want to participate in these events,” Stein told ESPN. “Some of these players are in favor of a shorter season, saying, ‘I need more rest, I need a shorter season.'” But when given the opportunity to take time off, they choose to participate in more events. ”
Alcaraz, who has been one of the most vocal advocates for the need for a shorter season, will compete in the high-stakes Six Kings Slam in October and several other exhibition events in December, including New York, Newark and Miami. He quickly denied that correlation.
“We play exhibitions in a different format and under different conditions than the official tournaments, which are held for 15 or 16 consecutive days, and require a very high level of concentration and physical strength,” Alcaraz said at the Six Kings Slam press conference. “We’re just having fun and playing tennis for a day or two, which is great and why we choose exhibitions.
“I understand (the criticism), but sometimes people don’t understand us or our opinions. When you’re running an event this long, like two weeks or two-and-a-half weeks, it’s not as tough mentally (compared to).”
While it seems that way most players believe something It needs to change, but there are challenges in the details.
Asked what should change, Fritz said: “We just need to shorten it. There’s too much.” “That’s too much.”
He added that he did not believe any changes would occur in the future.
“I don’t think our voices are being heard,” he said. “There’s me, Carlos and I think Sasha (Zverev) as well, but there’s just three of the top four players in the world saying it needs to be shortened, and there’s really no talk of any changes at all.”
And it’s not that simple. For example, it may seem logical to end the season with a year-end final right after the US Open, but that would leave the current 12 WTA tournaments and 13 ATP tournaments (along with the Billie Jean King Cup, Davis Cup, and Laver Cup) on the calendar. Organizing organizations and cities pay large licensing fees to host each event (prices vary depending on the level of the tournament) and typically enter into multi-year contracts.
Not much has changed, but there have been some changes.
The Billie Jean King Cup final was held in November of last year and in recent seasons, but this year it was moved to September due to the longer off-season for WTA players. It was also held in Shenzhen, China for the first time, and many players were able to play seamlessly in the Asian swing immediately after. (However, the playoffs to decide which teams will qualify for the 2026 tournament will be held from November 14th to 16th, with 21 countries participating.) Davis Cup will maintain its previous time slot, opening in Bologna, Italy, on November 18th and concluding on November 23rd.
There have been discussions about larger changes. In 2024, the winners of the four major tournaments have held early talks for a “Premier Tour” with an annual schedule consisting of a major, about 10 other events and a final at the end of the year.
In response, the WTA and ATP proposed a similar idea for the Slam tournaments this spring, with the aim of “reimagining the sport”. According to a reporter for The Athletic, the plan also includes cutting four majors, 10 1000-level events, 17 WTA 500-level events, 16 ATP events, and 250-level tournaments through license buybacks. Ultimately, the number of tournaments between the two organizations will be reduced from 118 to about 75. However, the WTA and ATP were unable to market the Grand Slam in line with this vision, reportedly due in part to the proposed structure for the board that would oversee the new venture.
But while it may be impossible to dramatically change the sport, there are other small ways to solve the problem, at least for now. Former world No. 1 Andy Roddick discussed changing the order of events in his fall schedule on a recent episode of his podcast, Served.
“Why can’t there be (ATP 250-level tournaments like the Nordic Open or European Open) after the World Tour finals?” Roddick wondered. “Why can’t we have a wrap-around season where these (250) spend a month (into the new year)? (If) more players want more chances, that’s great. Let’s do that. And if the top players choose to play in the Six Kings or other exhibitions, then in the new year They can’t complain anymore about the schedule being too long because (as it stands) they have to fill some space. They have to play something before the World Tour if the finals end in late November. ”
The WTA and ATP are not unaware of players’ complaints and concerns. In a statement to ESPN, the WTA said player welfare is its “top priority” and that it is in constant communication with players, including through the Players Council and WTA Board of Directors representatives.
“After extensive consideration, players and tournament representatives have voted to introduce enhancements to the Tour’s season structure in 2024,” the WTA statement continued. “The updated structure significantly increases player compensation ($400 million over the next few years), adds more competition opportunities at all levels of the tour, and establishes clearer player participation guidelines for top-ranked players to ensure stronger fields at top events, while also making it easier for fans to follow and connect with the players and the season.”
The group added that it was “committed to constantly reviewing the structure of the tour.”
Asked for comment, the ATP directed ESPN to an interview with president Andrea Gaudenzi in August. Gaudenge described the calendar as “complicated” but said the ATP’s goal was to “extend the offseason.” But he emphasized the individual nature of tennis, adding that the ATP is one of many organizing bodies in professional tennis and has a say in the schedule.
“One player may be eliminated in the first round, while another may lift the trophy after the final,” Gaudenzi said. “Finding solutions that work at both ends of the spectrum is never easy. And you can’t just build a calendar around a single population of players. You have to consider all populations.”
However, no matter how far apart the players and forces seem to be on the schedule, it is clear that the current situation is delicate at best.
Djokovic, who spent several years on the ATP’s players council and founded the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA) in 2020, has been a fierce critic of the current evolving schedule for years and has been against it for “more than 15 years” in his estimation. But when asked ahead of October’s Shanghai Masters event, even he admitted it was a “very complex” subject.
Ultimately, he said players will need to work harder and learn the different layers of the tennis ecosystem if they want to see change.
“At the end of the day, as a player and as someone who has played at the highest level for over 20 years, I can say that the players are not united enough,” Djokovic said. “Players aren’t participating enough when they should be participating. So they make comments, they complain, and then they leave… But you have to invest time and energy in yourself… understanding how the system works, understanding what you can do to reverse it, understanding what you can do to improve it in terms of the benefit of the players.”
“Because when you go to the media and talk about things, you might get energy and attention, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t change anything, right? I know that from personal experience, believe me.”