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topicnews · October 1, 2024

German tennis professional says: “Tournament calendar far too full”

German tennis professional says: “Tournament calendar far too full”

Jan-Lennard Struff spoke out critically in the discussion about stress in tennis. “The tournament calendar is far too long and far too full, it’s absolutely clear,” said Struff on Sport 1: “It’s difficult to manage because it’s about points, it’s about money, it’s about world ranking positions. If you don’t play one or two tournaments, the competition scores points.

A maximum of the absolute top players could afford longer breaks – in this context, Struff was talking about Grand Slam record champion Novak Djokovic or world number one Jannik Sinner. Most recently, four-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev, among others, expressed criticism of the long season.

Struff sees the late end of the season with the Davis Cup finals from November 19th to 24th as unfortunate. “Of course the date in November is not ideal, you also want to have a vacation and then a good preparation for the season,” said the 34-year-old: “Nevertheless, it is always an honor to play for your country and therefore a little conflicted.”

In contrast to Zverev, Struff has given his commitment to national coach Michael Kohlmann and will therefore be one of the hopefuls in the quarter-finals against Canada. A place in the German team is still open if Zverev decides to take part.