Carlos Alcaraz has voiced fresh frustration over the relentless demands of the tennis calendar, warning that top players are being stretched to their physical limits by a schedule that leaves little time for recovery or preparation.
Speaking ahead of his opening match at the Rolex Paris Masters, the final ATP Masters 1000 event of the season, the world No 1 said the volume of tournaments required of elite players is unsustainable.
“I can’t answer with an exact number,” Alcaraz said when asked about the ideal amount of matches a player should contest each year.
“But obviously they have to do something with the calendar. The amount of tournaments we have to play is too high. We don’t have enough time to rest or practice properly.”
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The 22-year-old, who is playing his 16th event of 2025, said the tour’s relentless pace prevents players from preparing adequately between tournaments.
“It’s week after week after week,” he said. “We don’t have the chance to take a week just to prepare well for what’s coming next.”
Alcaraz’s comments come amid growing concern among players about the expanding ATP schedule.
Carlos Alcaraz has voiced fresh frustration over the relentless demands of the tennis calendar, warning that top players are being stretched to their physical limits by a schedule that leaves little time for recovery or preparation
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The men’s tour recently confirmed that, beginning in 2028, the number of Masters 1000 tournaments will increase from nine to ten with the addition of a new event in Saudi Arabia.
Eight of the existing Masters tournaments are already mandatory for the top-ranked players, adding to the strain of an increasingly crowded calendar.
While the expansion promises more prize money and ranking opportunities, Alcaraz has repeatedly questioned the long-term impact on players’ health.
Carlos Alcaraz has won six Grand Slam titles so far
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Carlos Alcaraz faces Cameron Norrie on Tuesday
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Speaking earlier this year at the Laver Cup, he warned that the pressure to compete almost nonstop was unsustainable.
“The calendar is so tight, a lot of tournaments, no days off or not as many as I want,” he said. “There are a lot of mandatory tournaments during the year, and probably in the next few years there will be even more. They’re going to kill us in some way.”
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The Spaniard returns to competition in Paris after a month away, having withdrawn from the Shanghai Masters with a left ankle injury.
That absence followed other notable pullouts this season, including from Madrid due to an adductor problem and from Montreal because of fatigue.
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner could meet at the Paris Masters
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Despite those interruptions, Alcaraz has kept a packed schedule of exhibitions and promotional events.
His off-court commitments for 2025 include a showcase in Puerto Rico with Frances Tiafoe before Indian Wells, a mixed doubles appearance with Emma Raducanu at the US Open, and December exhibitions at A Racquet at the Rock in Newark, New Jersey, and the Miami Tennis Invitational with Brazilian prodigy Joao Fonseca.
Alcaraz will begin his Paris Masters campaign against Britain’s Cameron Norrie on Tuesday, in a draw that also features world No 2 Jannik Sinner for the first time since their US Open meeting.
But as the season nears its end, the world’s top player has made it clear that his concerns extend beyond this week’s competition—calling for a rethink of the sport’s ever-expanding calendar before it pushes players, as he puts it, “too far.”