CONCERNED Carlos Alcaraz says he will take “some long breaks” from the tennis circuit to avoid sustaining another serious injury.
And he has warned that unless there is a huge rejig and rethink of the global calendar, there will be more big-name absentees.
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Alcaraz, 23, is defending his men’s singles crown in New York yet he had been sidelined since April 4 with a wrist problem suffered at the Barcelona Open.
In light of THIRTEEN top male players missing the US Open through injury – including world No.1 Jannik Sinner – the Spaniard reckons the only way to survive is with enforced rest.
The two-time Wimbledon champion claims it is “impossible” to play in everything.
Alcaraz said: “I mean, I took more (time off) than I wanted.
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“Seeing how tight is the calendar, obviously I don’t want to have this break because of an injury.
“But 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, because it’s impossible to play them all.
“I think they’re adding more important tournaments.
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“You can say, no. You can keep one or two.
“You can decide your calendar, but there are some Masters 1000s or some Grand Slams.
“And we’ll have been out playing for 40 weeks if we got to play every mandatory tournament that the ATP requires us to play.
“So it’s impossible, and we’re seeing a lot of players getting injured, a lot of players getting tired.
“If they don’t do anything about it, we’re going to see even more in the future.
“But for me, taking this break because of an injury, it wasn’t that good.
“I’m going to take some breaks and miss some tournaments in the future, for sure.”
The ATP declined to comment on Alcaraz’s specific comments but last month the governing body of men’s tennis issued a response to criticism of the yearly diary of tournaments.
The ATP said: “The calendar and format reforms have been developed through extensive consultation with player and tournament representatives.
“Players have the flexibility to shape their own schedules.
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“The calendar must serve the needs of the full player group, from those consistently competing deep into tournaments to those playing fewer matches and seeking greater opportunities to compete.”
No.2 seed Alcaraz – who looked vulnerable on Wednesday night in his 4-6 6-0 6-3 6-2 win over Portuguese player Jaime Faria – will now play China’s Wu Yibing in round three.