Several of the biggest players on the ATP Tour have fallen by the wayside during this year’s grass court season.
Carlos Alcaraz’s wrist injury has seen him miss the entire swing, with confirmed appearances at Queen’s and Wimbledon nixed weeks in advance.
He is not the only player who has been forced out of a grass court event on the ATP Tour, though, with the likes of Lorenzo Musetti, Jack Draper, Holger Rune, Valentin Vacherot, and Luciano Darderi all pulling out of Queen’s.
The grass court swing comes at an increasingly difficult time of year, after a very intensive period on the European clay court swing.
Three Masters 1000 events take place on the clay, as well as Roland Garros, and players always find it difficult to transition to the grass.
Asked how to stop the likes of Alcaraz missing key events on the calendar, John Lloyd issued a strong new rule proposal for the Grand Slams.
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Speaking on BBC’s coverage of Queen’s, “In my opinion, the calendar is awful. It has been for years. I think Grand Slams should be best of three sets anyway. I’ve said that for years. All the way through, or certainly from the quarter-finals. I’ve been saying this for years.
“We are going to see more and more injuries, mark my words, unless something is changed. It will happen, there will be more injuries. The best of five sets for four Slams, it’s not just the playing at the tournament that does it, it’s the preparation.
“Getting yourself in shape for those. During the season, as you’re playing in Miami, and Indian Wells, and so on, you get into the clay, and then you’ve got to up your training again ready for the French and Wimbledon. You ease off after Wimbledon for a couple of weeks and then you’ve got to get yourself ready for the US Open again. It’s insanity.”
Lloyd believes a best of three set match would still suffice for fans as the intensity of the matches will still be played at a very high level.
“In our day, the best of five in my day is the equivalent of the best of three sets now,” he said. “The physicality of the players is night and day to what it was in my day. We have to change this. We will get more injuries unless something is done.
“Best of five sets, when players have to come out from the starting point, every match will be dynamic. People remember great matches, but they remember them because they were at Slams. Not because it’s five hours, a three hour match will be remembered as much if they are at the Slams.”
Lloyd also believes the best of three format would suit evening sessions at the Grand Slams far better, as players won’t be playing until the early hours of the morning.
“It’s not so much about Wimbledon, because Wimbledon finishes at 11 o’clock. The other three Slams have evening sessions. Best of five sets, you cannot work it this way. The men’s matches get longer and longer, it’s ridiculous. Matches finish at 2 o’clock in the morning.
“No one wants it. People have gone home, people have to get to work the next day. The people watching on TV have nodded off. Players go to bed at 5.
“It can ruin a tournament for them. It’s insanity. If you’re going to have evening matches, you have to move it to best of three sets in my opinion.”
Evening sessions have become a staple on the circuit, with the Australian Open, the US Open, and Roland Garros embracing them over the years.
Several players, including Jannik Sinner, have expressed their discontent about having to leave the court at such a late time.
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