Is tennis calendar congested or is daily grind more physically demanding? Gigi Salmon weighs up the key questions | Tennis News

Gigi Salmon examines whether the tennis schedule is sustainable in the modern era. Is it really congested or is the daily grind just more physically demanding? The commentator weighs up the key questions in her latest Sky Sports column.

I love the fact that if life allowed, I could pretty much watch tennis all day, every day, because chances are that you can find tennis being played somewhere at some level, but the question has to be asked at what cost.

We are into the final part of the season and while injuries are par for the course, it feels that through a combination of injury, mental or physical fatigue more players than normal are calling time early on their season to give themselves enough time to rest, recover and go again.

Does tennis need to change?

One of the most recent players whose season came to an abrupt and painful end was Holger Rune, who went into his semi-final in Stockholm nursing a hamstring injury and left with a torn Achilles, which, as the 22-year-old confirmed in a statement the following day: “It’s going be a while before I can step on court again. My Achilles is fully broken on the proximal part meaning I need an operation and from here rehabilitation.”

The Achilles surgery has already taken place, it was deemed a success and now the long road to recovery begins for Rune.

The injury to the Dane prompted British No 1 Jack Draper, whose 2025 season has ended with a left arm injury, to take to social media asking for change in exchange for longevity: “We are pushing our bodies to do things they aren’t supposed to in elite sport… we have so many incredible younger guys on the tour right now and I’m proud to be a part of that. However the tour and the calendar have to adapt if any of us are going to achieve some sort of longevity.”

The first person to reply to Draper’s message on X was former US Open finalist Taylor Fritz starting his message with ‘Facts,’ and going on to add that it wasn’t just the full schedule that is leading to injuries but also “balls, courts and conditions have slowed down a lot making the weekly grind even more physically demanding and tough on the body.”

The list of players calling time on their seasons is ever-growing, but one statement that stood out was from Daria Kasatkina, with the world No 22 saying: “Truth is, I’ve hit a wall and can’t continue. I need a break. A break from the monotonous daily grind of life on the tour, the suitcases, the results, the pressure, the same faces (sorry, girls), everything that comes with this life.”

Other players who have said goodbye to the 2025 season are Emma Raducanu, Naomi Osaka, Elina Svitolina, Paula Badosa, Danielle Collins, Beatrice Haddad Mia, Francis Tiafoe and Hubert Hurkacz.

Is the intensity of the schedule sustainable?

I remember speaking to Iga Swiatek during Cincinnati last year for Sky Sports Tennis. I asked a fairly innocuous question about transitioning from the clay (Olympics) back to the hard courts, and her answer revolved around the intensity of the unsustainable schedule.

Speaking last month, Swiatek suggested that moving forward she may decide to miss some events: “Maybe I will have to choose some tournaments and skip them, even though they are mandatory.”

And world No 1 Carlos Alcaraz, who missed the Shanghai Masters to rest an ankle injury, returned at the Six Kings Slam exhibition event and put it more bluntly when he stated recently: “Probably, they are going to kill us in some way,” with reference to the congested calendar.

So what do players at the top of the game need to juggle in order to keep their ranking healthy and sponsors happy?

There are mandatory requirements for both tours. As things stand on the WTA Tour, it is mandatory for leading players to participate in a minimum of 20 events including the four Grand Slams, 10 WTA 1000 events and six 500-level tournaments.

Nineteen events count towards an ATP ranking every year (the Nitto ATP Finals count as an extra event), although it is only mandatory for those players who qualify for them to contest eight Masters 1000 events – Monte Carlo is a popular but not mandatory event.

Together with the four Grand Slams, players in the top 30 must also play at least four ATP 500 events.

It’s a tough one and it’s far from straightforward. The players want to earn more, so the tournaments become longer to make more money which is translated in part to prize money. There are also appearance fees, which can be very lucrative and impossible to say no to.

Impossible to say no to money?

Then there are the exhibitions, which, as individual contractors, they have a right to play. Imagine if someone came up to you and said the top prize on offer is $6m (£4.5m) with an extra $1.5m (£1.1m) just for turning up – that’s what the players taking part in the Six Kings Slam were playing for and I’m not sure anyone in their right mind would say no to that, but it all adds to the stress on the mind and body.

Sascha Zverev lost to Taylor Fritz in 59 minutes and walked away with $1.5m; that is impossible to say no to!

Despite shutting down their seasons, Draper has confirmed he will take part in the UTS event in London in December as he looks to test out his arm, while Raducanu is due to play an exhibition in Miami in December against Amanda Anisimova. Alcaraz, who isn’t happy with the length of the tennis calendar, will also be there up against the Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca.

This isn’t to say they shouldn’t be there as again, unlike most sports professionals, tennis players aren’t employees, so they play where they see fit and when it benefits them as independent contractors.

Expansion of Masters 1000 events

A talking point on tour this year has been the expansion of the majority of the ATP Masters 1000 events, six of which are combined with the WTA to 12 days and 96-player draws (ATP Monte Carlo and Paris remain as 56-player draws), with many unhappy with the increased duration.

But what it does allow for are more rest days between matches to aid recovery, increased revenue, reflected in the prize money and also, most importantly, opportunities for lower-ranked players.

You can use the recent example of the Monagasque Valentin Vacherot, who entered into qualifying for the Shanghai Masters as a lucky loser ranked 204 after nine players withdrew giving him his chance.

Nine matches later, his life would change forever when he was crowned champion, moving to a ranking of 40 and claiming a cheque for £824,000.

Had it been a one-week, 56-player draw, he wouldn’t even have considered making the journey as he would have had no chance of getting in.

Past players with 100+ matches played in a season? Yevgeny Kafelnikov

Is there a solution?

The purpose of this piece wasn’t to take sides or come up with an answer, but to highlight where the sport is at, what the players are saying and continue a conversation that has a long way to go in the mission to find a solution that suits everyone. I have heard people suggest fewer tour events and more exhibitions, while others say there should be fewer exhibition opportunities to take away temptation and allow players to rest and recover.

Now you won’t be surprised to learn that there is still tennis to be played in 2025. There are still places to be won at the respective Tour Finals, with the Davis Cup Finals in Bologna to come after the ATP Tour Finals in Turin, which we now know won’t feature Jannik Sinner as he looks to give himself as much time as possible to prepare for the season openers in Australia.

And the good news is that if there is tennis on, you will find it on Sky Sports Tennis, where we look forward to your company as we take you through to the end of the season.

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