Taylor Fritz shares what many are thinking about a big tennis problem as Alex Eala struggles in the final.
The ATP and WTA tennis tours have some of the toughest schedules in sports – something Alex Eala really showed during the Hong Kong Open final on Sunday. Top players often deal with injuries or have to take breaks to recover because the tournaments are so demanding.
Eala struggled with this in her latest WTA final, which makes a recent comment from Taylor Fritz feel very relevant.
Eala started strong against Claire Liu, breaking early, but then had to get treatment on her right knee when she was down 4-3. After that, she didn’t win another game and lost 6-3, 6-0 to the American player.
This match was Eala’s 70th of the year, played across 24 tournaments. After winning her first WTA singles title at the Washington Open in August, the 21-year-old has had a great year, reaching her highest ranking at 17. But before Hong Kong, she had been struggling a bit, which some think is because of how much tennis players have to play.
Carlos Alcaraz has talked about this too, saying the tough schedule might seriously wear players down. “A lot of good players are going to miss many tournaments because of injuries,” he said.
Now, US star Taylor Fritz shared his thoughts about the never-ending tennis calendar on Kate Mackz’s The Running Interview Show. He said, “It’s just so year-round, round-the-clock. We get only one month off, and even that month, if you take it completely off, you’d be showing up unprepared. So realistically, you can only take about two weeks off before you have to start training again. Basically, we never really get a break – it’s like living out of a suitcase.”
Players have been raising concerns about these tough schedules for a long time, but it’s getting more attention now, especially with serious injuries to stars like Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
Right now, top-30 ATP players must play all four Grand Slams, eight of nine ATP 1000 events (except Monte Carlo), at least four ATP 500 events, and the ATP Finals if they finish in the top 8. WTA players have a similar load, with 10 must-play WTA 1000 events.
Looking ahead to 2028, the ATP is planning to make no events mandatory, hoping to ease players’ burden by offering bigger prize money to encourage entries instead. The WTA hasn’t made this change yet, but with players like Eala feeling the pressure, it might happen soon.
The tough tennis schedule is clearly taking a toll, and many players and fans are hoping for changes that help stars stay healthy and at their best.