🔗 Share this article

At the point when Daria Kasatkina cut short her 2025 season early in October, the ex-top ten player detailed how she had "hit a wall."

"The calendar is overwhelming. My mental and emotional state is frayed, and, unfortunately, I'm not alone," she expressed.

The Ukrainian athlete Elina Svitolina, a two-time Wimbledon semi-finalist, had already declared she was not in "the right headspace" to carry on, while reigning Grand Slam champions Iga Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz additionally are convinced the calendar is overly extended.

This issue remains under discussion as the world's leading tennis players reconvene in Australia for the commencement of the 2026 season.

A slightly longer off-season than 2025 has been greeted positively. Nonetheless, several weeks is not regarded as sufficient time for thorough recuperation before work commences for an eleven-month schedule regarded as among the most onerous in professional sport.

"The demands of tennis are harder than ever before," said Dr. Robby Sikka, chief medical officer at the Professional Tennis Players' Association (PTPA).

"Matches and rallies are longer, players are faster, they're hitting the ball harder.

"It is our obligation to shield the competitors and give them a more viable sport."

So what is being done and what next actions could be implemented?

Condensing the Tour Schedule

The 2025 season covered 47 weeks for many players on the ATP circuit, starting with the United Cup team event in late December 2024 and finishing with the Davis Cup final in late November.

The women's season concluded two weeks earlier when the WTA Finals wrapped up in early November. The ITF moved the Billie Jean King Cup Finals forward to September to help combat scheduling concerns.

The men's tour states it does not take the concerns of the players "casually," while WTA leadership notes player welfare will "consistently be the foremost concern."

That failed to satisfy the PTPA, which commenced proceedings against the men's and women's tours in March, citing "unfair practices and a clear neglect of athlete well-being."

Overhauling the calendar is an obvious solution but cannot be achieved easily given the complex nature of tennis governance, where the four Grand Slams, ATP, WTA, and ITF each have controlling interests.

"It is crucial to evaluate whether we can create more time at the end of the year for an more substantial rest period, or can we allow for a pause during the season so there is a short hiatus," noted Dr. Sikka.

Former world number one Andy Roddick, a vocal proponent of reform, says the season should not go past 1 November.

The ATP Tour has cut the number of events which count towards the rankings for 2026, which it thinks will reduce "overall demands" on the players.

"One point that often gets overlooked: players determine their own playing calendar," commented ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi.

"Such autonomy is uncommon in elite athletics. But with that comes obligation - knowing when to push and when to recover."

Extending several mandatory tournaments across a fortnight - creating so-called 'super weeks' - has also been faulted.

"I think players are more mentally tired and more fatigued because they're spending more days away," stated Britain's former men's world number one, Andy Murray.

As well as mental burnout, there are apprehensions about the growing physical demands.

Players experience a higher rate of upper-body injuries in certain months, according to available data.

The organization says these "anticipated spikes" are down to the structure of the calendar and the turnarounds between court surfaces.

Minimizing Midnight Matches & Uniform Balls

When a memorable contest at the Australian Open concluded in the middle of the night in 2023, it was expected to drive reform.

In 2024, the tours introduced a new rule preventing matches starting after 11pm.

But there have continued to be instances of matches concluding long after midnight - which medical experts insist.

"When you are done playing you just don't go home," said Dr. Sikka.

"There are press obligations, recovery sessions, and physio appointments. Your day doesn't finish until much later.

"There is insufficient opportunity for the body and mind to heal. There is no other sport which mandates that."

A lack of standardization in tournament equipment - leading to changes in bounce and speed - has been cited as a source of more frequent upper body injuries.

"My career has been plagued by injuries to the arm and wrist," said one top British player, "and such ailments are increasingly prevalent among peers."

A former US Open champion, who retired last year with an chronic wrist problem, believes tournaments in the same seasonal segment should use one uniform ball.

"Implementing this would not be overly complex - the same ball for clay, the same for hard and the same for grass. That would be incredibly useful to the players," he said.

The tours began using a more standardized equipment policy during 2025 and anticipate "total consistency" in the coming years.

Emulate American Sports & Safeguard Juniors

Sports scientists believe tennis must take cues from how American team sports use data to inform the welfare of its stars.

Following data-led analysis, the NFL mandated consistent playing surfaces and improved helmet technology to reduce the risk of injury.

"American football has implemented numerous reforms driven by data," said an analytics expert whose firm provides data to monitor player welfare.

"We've seen the economic model is skyrocketing because their games are so competitive and they're maintaining a healthy roster.

"They're putting their money where their mouth is by protecting athletes and allocating major funds – that model is the exemplar."

Other leagues have introduced rules aimed at protecting pitchers, limiting their throws at the professional level and putting limits for young players.

Some retired players believe the stress put on the upper body of tennis players from a tender age is a significant factor in their injuries later on.

"Training begins in childhood and have so many iterations of our groundstrokes," said the former champion.

"At some point it goes on the wrist. Way more players have problems with the wrist. I think the problem is the many, many repetitions."

Athletes Are Pushing for Reform - What Are Their Demands?

An growing group of players are becoming vocal about the demands placed on them.

Current world number ones are among a coalition of top players ramping up pressure on the Grand Slams with calls for a bigger piece of the financial pie, as well as meaningful consultation about the length of the season, extended events and scheduling.

Last year, a top-ten American player said it was "unreasonable" he was only able to take one week off before the next campaign.

Support is not always forthcoming, though, given top players sometimes commit to lucrative non-tour contests.

One Grand Slam champion from Britain says the grind is a "difficulty" but thinks top players "moaning about the calendar" is not a good look.

"{Uniform