The 2028 season will mark the beginning of a new era in tennis. The ATP announced a few months ago that a Masters 1000 event will be held in Saudi Arabia from that year, along with a reduction in the number of ATP 250 tournaments currently on the calendar. Far from settling the sport’s long-running scheduling debate, the decision has stirred considerable unrest in the locker room.
Stanislas Wawrinka has not hidden his frustration with the way the calendar has been evolving. “So far, it’s been about adding more tennis rather than cutting back the schedule. Tournaments have become longer and bigger. In the end, you have to face reality: the season is really long. The tournaments are very long. The Masters 1000 events are getting more extended — 10-day events, finals finishing on a Wednesday, a single qualifying round. I’d say the calendar is a bit messy,” he said in Melbourne when asked by CLAY in a press conference.
“It’s hard for the younger generation to accept that they’ll have to sacrifice some tournaments, and probably some money at the end of the year, for their health and for a long-term career,” added the three-time Grand Slam champion, who will retire from professional tennis this season.
The dilemma surrounding the extended calendar is a recurring issue in the corridors of every tournament on the tour. Tommy Paul, one of the top American players, admits the changes have not been positive.
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“As players, we always like having big tournaments, but the biggest events are now two weeks long, and I don’t think that makes sense. A lot of people think two-week events are easier for us, but they’re not. We’re going to play fewer tournaments, but we’ll be competing over the same amount of time. There aren’t many changes,” he told CLAY in Brisbane.
Chile’s Christian Garín added another perspective to the discussion — that of a player not based in Europe or the United States, but in South America, where travel costs to the tour’s main cities remain a challenge.
“To get to Europe, we have to take a 14-hour flight — and not alone, but with a coach, a physio, a fitness trainer, so we can be in good shape. The costs are extremely high. It’s not the same being a tennis player in South America as it is in Europe. Last year I played here in South America and it was a pleasure: two-hour flights and I was already at the next tournament, I could even go back home the same day. They’re different realities. I really enjoy being a tennis player, I love it, but obviously there are things that need to improve. Hopefully this doesn’t affect tennis in South America too much,” he told CLAY.
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In fact, the South American Golden Swing is one of the stretches of the calendar most under threat from this new shake-up. The proposed slot for the Saudi Masters 1000 would be after the Australian Open and before Indian Wells — precisely the weeks when Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires and Santiago host their tournaments. Smaller events in terms of budget, but giants when it comes to tradition and passion for tennis.
“We have to accept that top-50 players won’t choose the South American swing. There will be Doha, Dubai, a Masters, Acapulco. It will be a swing with a huge number of points, all on the same surface. You can’t compete with that. Obviously, players who need points or who don’t get into those tournaments will come, but there won’t be any stars,” Argentina’s Tomás Etcheverry told CLAY.
There is also the argument about opening tennis up to new regions, even if that may indirectly close doors elsewhere: “I think it will be great because it will bring tennis to a new country — that’s always a good thing,” Gaël Monfils said during the Australian Open.
But all of that seems minor compared to the most complex issue surrounding this new calendar. The ATP will award one of the ten most important tournaments on its tour to a country that criminalises homosexuality and enforces restrictive laws on women.
“As players, we don’t have much of a say in matters like that. Our organisations want to do business and, unfortunately, we don’t have a vote,” Australian player Daria Kasatkina told CLAY. The Russian-born, Australian-naturalised player — who changed nationality after coming out as gay — joins a long list of women in tennis who have expressed discomfort with Saudi Arabia’s growing presence in the sport.
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