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Tim Henman has called for changes to the calendar saying the 12-day Masters 1000 is ‘too much’ tennis | Tennis News
Former British No 1 Tim Henman has called for changes to the calendar saying the 12-day Masters 1000 is “too much” tennis.
World No 1 Jannik Sinner announced 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.
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Alcaraz spoke about the intensity of the schedule and how important it is to have a break to prevent injury
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 No 4 Henman, who won the Masters 1000 title at the Paris Masters in 2003, would like to see changes.
“I think it’s been pretty well documented that the 12-day Masters 1000s is just too much tennis,” said Henman.
“That’s too much time on the road and unfortunately we’re seeing that with the number of players that are injured. I would definitely bring that to eight or nine days, which would free up the calendar.
“That’s sort of more of a product change. I think if I had to make a practical, rule chance, then I would just get rid of the let serve.
“Every other shot can hit the top of the net, go over and in, so I would get rid of it and play it as it comes.”
‘ATP must do something if they want us to play important tournaments’
Alcaraz inspired Team Europe to victory over Team World in the Laver Cup at the weekend
Alcaraz’s run to the US Open quarter-finals was his first tournament since the Barcelona Open back in April after suffering a wrist injury.
Speaking in New York, the Spaniard stated: “Honestly, my break was longer than expected.
“Given the packed schedule, I obviously didn’t want to stop because of an injury. However, in the future, I will take breaks, longer breaks. Maybe not four months, but one or two months, skipping certain tournaments, because it’s impossible to play them all.”
At the Laver Cup, which was won by Team Europe, Alcaraz said: “I think tennis has changed a lot. They have changed the balls, the courts, the speed of how we play, the movement is now more aggressive and you have to be prepared.
“We need weeks to practice and to make the physical training. There are more important tournaments making us play more and more, so I really want to takes breaks.
“Who knows what will happen in the future, but if the ATP and [chairman] Andrea Gaudenzi has to do something if they want us to play a lot of important tournaments.”
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Highlights from the US Open mixed doubles with Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz taking centre stage
Italian Flavio Cobolli is also having second thoughts about the number of tournaments he plays in.
“If you look at the number of tournaments and the number of matches we play during the year, it’s not that high,” he said. “We’re used to playing that much. The only thing we’re not used to is staying at a tournament for so many days.
“The tournament format has changed, and maybe we still need to get used to it. I’ve now been away from home for almost a month and a half, and even if I had gone all the way here, I would have played fewer than 10 matches.”
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Martina Navratilova answers questions at the US Open about American success, British woes at Grand Slams, and why tennis is harder than football!!!
Murray: I understand it from the players’ perspective
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Naomi Broady, Ryan Harrison and Jamie Murray discuss Alcaraz’s future schedule
Speaking to Sky Sports Tennis, Jamie Murray said: “I can totally understand it from the players’ perspective. The Tour is longer than it’s ever been in terms of commitment and days away from home.
“These younger guys have seen how Roger [Federer] and Rafael [Nadal] have elongated their careers – how they finished their careers as well. If they want to play until they’re 34, 35, 36, they will probably have to skip tournaments and that’s something the Tour needs to consider.
“The Tour is catering for over a hundred players and they want to be out there competing.”
Stream tennis with no contract on NOW and the Sky Sports App. You can watch the WTA China Open and ATP 1000 Shanghai Masters live on Sky Sports.
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County Championship: Leicestershire have eight points reinstated from 27-point deduction for poor pitch blamed on Bollywood film shoot | Cricket News
Leicestershire’s 27-point deduction for breaching pitch regulations in August’s win over Glamorgan has been reduced to 19.
The Foxes were relegated from Division One of the County Championship last week following an innings defeat by champions Warwickshire.
Leicestershire’s groundsman Callum Lewin had argued filming of an unscheduled Bollywood film – believed to be for a biopic of former India captain Sourav Ganguly – had taken place at the ground four days before the Glamorgan fixture between August 20-23, preventing the pitch from being covered for eight hours in bright sunshine and heatwave temperatures.
The Cricket Discipline Panel (CDP) upheld the charge against Leicestershire for a breach of the ECB’s Pitch Regulations.
It imposed an immediate eight-point deduction from the County Championship plus the 19 points Leicestershire earned from winning the match by 42 runs.
A further eight-point deduction was also suspended until the end of the 2027 season and a £5,000 fine.
Leicestershire confirmed last Thursday that they would appeal against the original sanction.
Following the CDP holding a further hearing last Wednesday, the sanction has been amended with Leicestershire having eight points reinstated.
Leicestershire chief executive Emma White said in a statement: “The (CDP) Panel made clear that the latest hearing and Amended Decision, which relates to the sanction alone, were not appeal proceedings.
“Our position on the charge is therefore unchanged. We continue to believe it should not have been upheld, and that we ought not to have suffered the points deduction we have. We therefore still intend to appeal, focusing upon the process and resultant evidential position upon which the Panel was caused to decide the case.
“Our recently instructed counsel, Craig Harris, and Oliver Laurence of Periculum Sport shall continue to act for the Club throughout the appeal process.
“As we are now engaged in that process, it would not be appropriate for the club to comment further at this stage. I would again ask all supporters to do the same, and to treat everyone involved, including players and staff from other counties, and those administering this process, with courtesy and respect, both at the ground and online.”
The amended decision adjusts Leicestershire’s points tally in Division One to 119, 17 behind third-from-bottom Essex.
A wholly successful appeal would lift Leicestershire out of the relegation zone and above Essex.
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County Championship: Leicestershire have eight points reinstated from 27-point deduction for poor pitch blamed on Bollywood film shoot | Cricket News
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