Carlos Alcaraz believes Grand Slam tournaments should continue to be played over the best-of-five sets format, saying that changing it would damage the tradition of tennis’ four biggest tournaments.
The debate over player workload, late finishes and the busy tennis calendar grew after the US Open last month. Alcaraz’s title defence ended in the quarter-finals against Ben Shelton in a match that finished at 3:33am.
While Alcaraz has supported calls for changes to prevent matches from finishing in the early hours, he does not believe the answer is to change the traditional Grand Slam format.
“The beauty of the Grand Slams is playing best-of-five sets. If we take away that and play best-of-three sets, we’re killing the legacy of the Grand Slams and killing the Grand Slams,” Alcaraz told reporters in Tokyo.
“We’ve been playing best-of-five sets in the Grand Slam since the very beginning, and I think that’s what makes those tournaments different and special. I wouldn’t touch anything from that and for me, it’s okay to play best-of-five.”
Novak Djokovic has previously suggested that Grand Slam matches could be played over three sets in the opening rounds.
Andrew Abdo, the new Tennis Australia chief, also said last month that the Grand Slam tournaments could look at different formats or scoring systems.
However, the Australian Open later clarified that while innovation was important, five-set tennis was “here to stay”.
The four Grand Slam tournaments have also started working more closely with players through a new Player Advisory Council, which aims to address concerns about player welfare and pay.
Alcaraz believes the main focus should instead be on the busy tennis calendar.
The Spaniard was out with a wrist injury for almost five months before returning at the US Open, and he believes players should not have to compete in so many tournaments throughout the year.
“I’ve always said that it has to change,” Alcaraz said about the calendar.
“Playing a little bit less and not having that amount of tournaments in a row, week after week. So I definitely would change that.”
The Professional Tennis Players Association has also raised concerns about the demands of the tennis calendar as part of its legal action against the sport’s governing bodies.
ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi defended the busy schedule last year, saying that playing decisions remain with the players and that the tour was working to make sure the number of matches played throughout the season was appropriate.
