The 2025 season has seen many medical timeouts, especially in the later months of the tennis calendar. Remember the Shanghai Masters and the China Open? Now, the same pattern continues at the Challenger tournament in Maia, Portugal, where Gastao Elias required medical attention.

In the latest Round of 32 match in Maia, Portuguese player Elias took a medical timeout after losing the second set to Henrique Rocha.

He appeared to be dealing with discomfort in his abdominal or hip area, which rendered him shirtless as the medical team arrived courtside right after the set ended 3-6 in Rocha’s favour.

Elias started strong and took the first set 7-5. But the match slipped away as he lost the next two sets 6-3 and 6-1, even though he hit 4 aces. The 35-year-old Portuguese player struggled under pressure in the final stages.

The medical timeout he took in the second set also affected his rhythm. It became a turning point in the match and shifted the momentum away from him.

However, this was not the first time such an issue had occurred. Mid-match medical timeouts have become a major problem this season, causing widespread concern across the tennis circuit.

Not just Gastao Elias, even top players struggled with medical timeouts in 2025

The relentless grind of the tennis tour has pushed players to their limits this season, and even top-seeded stars have not escaped the growing concerns.

Jack Draper offered one of the earliest reminders of the physical toll. In his Japan Open quarterfinal against France’s Ugo Humbert, he struggled with an abdominal issue. The 23-year-old lost the first set 7-5 and trailed 2-1 in the second before taking a medical timeout. He tried to push on, but ultimately retired from the match.

Earlier in the year at the Australian Open, Jannik Sinner faced a similar scare. After holding serve for a 3-2 lead, Sinner received a medical timeout that lasted just over 10 minutes. He returned more settled and soon controlled the match. His 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 win over the 13th-seeded Holger Rune kept his title defence alive.

Even Carlos Alcaraz dealt with a scare at the US Open. He took a medical timeout against 32nd seed Luciano Darderi to treat a knee issue. It proved precautionary, and the player went on to win the match. “I felt something that wasn’t working good in the knee,” Alcaraz said after the win and also shared that it wasn’t a serious concern.

Then, there is Novak Djokovic, who faced criticism for taking medical timeouts during his Shanghai Masters run.

Now, the conversation has shifted. The rising frequency of medical pauses has cast a shadow over the ATP schedule, pushing concerns about player health and tour demands into the spotlight.

What once felt like isolated issues now shapes a worrying narrative, one that the tennis world can no longer ignore.