Injuries and physical exertion are a part of tennis, as they are for any other sport. But in recent years, the frequency of injuries has become so high that players have been forced to point to the demanding tour schedule. Carlos Alcaraz once again showed how unhappy he is with the players not being taken into consideration.
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“In the future, I’m going to take some breaks, some long breaks- maybe not four months, but one month, two months, missing some tournaments,” said Alcaraz during the post-match press conference at the US Open. “You can say no; you can skip one or two… In a way, they’re making us play… play every mandatory tournament that the ATP requires us to play.”
Carlos Alcaraz returned to the US Open after four months away from the tour, and he is already talking about taking a break. His wrist injury kept him sidelined since April, leaving fans waiting to see his comeback. He opened with a win over Roman Safiullin before facing another tough test against Jaime Faria. Faria took the opening set, but Alcaraz answered by winning the next three sets comfortably.
The defending champion looks sharp, but his biggest message came away in the post-game presser.
Alcaraz has made it clear that he will not play every tournament anymore. He believes that playing every mandatory tournament could leave players competing for around 40 weeks every year. “It’s impossible to play them all,” Alcaraz said, pointing toward players getting injured and tired throughout the season.
His own long recovery has shown him why planned breaks may now become a need.
That decision comes while tennis keeps adding events and leaving players little room between competitions. The 2026 ATP calendar has 9 Masters 1000 events, with 7 using 12-day formats. Players also face 16 ATP 500 events and 29 ATP 250 events across 29 countries.
Some of them are required for a player to compete in, creating ranking pressure when players choose to miss certain tournaments. Taylor Fritz called it “a tough time of year” because finding a break in between tournaments has become a rarity.
The cost is visible whenever big names disappear before a tournament starts.
Jannik Sinner missed this US Open with a right knee injury after skipping Cincinnati. Casper Ruud and Marin Cilic also withdrew last minute from the tournament, while Jack Draper and Holger Rune also had no other choice.
WTA stars like Iga Swiatek have been vocal on this matter and said, “The calendar doesn’t help,” pointing to constant travel and changing conditions. While Zverev complained that players “don’t even get a full month off from tennis” anymore.
Now, the PTPA has added injury data to concerns players have raised for several years. Its project studied more than 30,000 matches across 8 years and found worrying info.
Upper-body injuries rose 42% early in 2026, while arm injuries jumped 112% when compared to 2025. The PTPA said, “The evidence is clear: the season is too long,” in its statement.
Carlos Alcaraz wants breaks, other players want changes, and if the ATP and the WTA don’t do something about this, the injury list keeps adding names like players add titles.