Carlos Alcaraz urges ATP to make big changes after struggling at the US Open
Men’s singles world No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz has asked the ATP to make a big change to how tennis matches are scheduled.
Alcaraz had a tough 2026 season. He was out for five months with a wrist injury from April to August, only returning at the US Open. He reached the quarter-finals, where he played a long, exciting match against America’s Ben Shelton. The match went to five sets and ended very late—at 3:34 a.m. local time.
Shelton won 6-7 (5-7), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (10-7) in what was the latest finish ever at the tournament.
Alcaraz believes changes should be made so matches don’t finish so late in the night.
The US Open winner, Alexander Zverev, also played three matches that ended after 1 a.m.
“I think it’s too much,” Alcaraz told BBC Sport. “People stayed for the last match, but if it had started earlier, the court would have been full. I’d like to see the schedule changed, with matches finishing by 11 p.m. or something like that.”
Talking about his US Open run, Alcaraz said, “The quarter-final was amazing — a real gift. It was tough, but I enjoyed it. That’s why I smiled when I left the court because I’d missed that feeling.”
Alcaraz isn’t the first player to question tennis scheduling, and probably won’t be the last. It’s not just the late match times that players find hard, but also the fact they have to play so many tournaments.
Former US Open finalist Taylor Fritz said it’s almost impossible to cut down on tournaments because of penalties for skipping required events.
“No matter how much I try to shorten my schedule, I still have a lot of matches. It’s really tough,” Fritz said on The Big T Podcast. “You have to play mandatory 500 and 1000 level tournaments. If you skip those and accept the penalties, you’re putting yourself at a big disadvantage. I’m playing all my mandatory events plus a few smaller ones, and it’s hard to play less.”
According to ATP rules, all top 30 players must compete in eight out of nine Masters tournaments. These include Indian Wells, Miami Open, Madrid Open, Italian Open, Canadian Open, Cincinnati Open, Shanghai Masters, and Paris Masters—while Monte-Carlo is optional. Players also need to take part in at least four ATP 500 events.
Missing these tournaments can lead to penalties, which affect ranking points and prize money shares.