McEnroe calls for changes to schedule as injuries affect top stars

FILE PHOTO - American former professional tennis player John McEnroe arrives on the black carpet for Laver Cup Opening Night at Magazine London. (is associated with: «McEnroe calls for changes to schedule as injuries affect top stars») Adam Davy/PA Wire/dpaJohn McEnroe believes players should be able to set their own schedules to help reduce injury absences at the top level of tennis.

>World number one Jannik Sinner announced on Friday that he will not be able to return from a knee injury as planned at the China Open next week, having not played since Wimbledon.

>Carlos Alcaraz missed the French Open and Wimbledon with a wrist problem while Britain’s Emma Raducanu and Jack Draper are among a number of other players who have been out for lengthy spells in 2026.

>McEnroe told the Press Association: “Obviously that is of huge concern when the two best players have missed significant time in the year when they’ve completely dominated for the past two or three years.

>“Carlos didn’t play the French or Wimbledon, that to me says all that needs to be said. We don’t want that.”

>Eight of the nine Masters 1000 tournaments across the season are mandatory for most top players along with four ATP 500 events, and the growth of most Masters events to 12 days has been a bone of contention among players.

>Former world number one McEnroe would like to see radical change, saying: “This is one of the issues that has to be addressed. Should there be requirements or should players be able to do what they think is best for them?

>“That would be, to me, best for the sport. They would all want to play Wimbledon and the majors, because that’s what people ask about, and then they could decide their schedule based on the way they feel represents what they can bring to the table.”

>Alcaraz and former captain McEnroe are both in London this weekend for the Laver Cup, the Ryder Cup-style tournament pitting Team Europe against Team World at The O2.

>McEnroe, meanwhile, will be back at the Greenwich venue next summer in conversation with Billie Jean King as part of The O2’s 20th anniversary celebrations.

>Called ‘Billie Jean King and John McEnroe – Champions in Sport. Champions in Life’, the event takes place on the eve of Wimbledon on Sunday, June 27.

>“The first Laver Cup that I won was here so to be in conversation with Billie Jean King, who I met when I was 16 and who’s obviously been a force in tennis for 50-60 years, is incredible,” said McEnroe.

>“I’m very much looking forward to that. Fans can expect to hear some stories they’ve probably heard to some degree and hopefully some others they haven’t heard as much.”

>Tennis scheduling may well be on the agenda, with the debate continuing over the sport’s late-night habit.

>Alcaraz and Ben Shelton set a new record for the latest finish in US Open history when their quarter-final went beyond 3:30 am earlier this month, while Venus Williams did not begin her first-round match until after midnight.

>Opinion is split over whether the early hours drama is something to be celebrated or criticized, and McEnroe said: “It’s probably both.

>“I was calling the match that ended at 3:30 am. That was a pain trying to get to sleep and I can only imagine for the players how much worse it was.

>“I grew up in New York and the US Open started these night matches in the 70s and I was part of a lot of night matches, and I liked playing at night, but not quite that late.

>“Sometimes things are uncontrollable, like every match going the distance. The shame is not as many people were watching a great match between Carlos Alcaraz and Ben Shelton when this would be potentially a really good opportunity for tennis to show its stuff.

>“What do you do to change it? You only play one match at night, you move the ladies to Louis Armstrong because they’re playing best of three? You give the men the option to play the next day? Well they’re not really going to want to do that because they’ve prepared the whole day.

>“There is no easy solution, that’s the bottom line.”