Carlos Alcaraz, Taylor Fritz, and other ATP stars’ complaints about the tennis schedule have been openly dismissed by English former ATP player Mark Petchey. The 55-year-old, now a prominent tennis analyst and coach, also pointed out that high-profile men’s players have yet to criticize the all-new Masters 1000 event set to commence from 2028 in Saudi Arabia.

Alcaraz has repeatedly voiced concerns about the demanding schedule, suggesting that players are at risk of physical and mental burnout. Fritz has echoed similar sentiments. However, Petchey, without naming the Spaniard or the American specifically, questioned these complaints.

Speaking recently during an appearance on Tennis Channel, the former World No. 80—who has worked with stars like Andy Murray and Emma Raducanu—remarked:
“What I disagree with massively is that they have a seat at the table in terms of these discussions and they publicly go out and firebomb their own tour, which I think is completely unacceptable. I think from a commercial point of view, it’s not the right approach.”

Petchey went on to suggest that, despite frequent complaints about the schedule, players raising these issues have remained silent about the recent addition of a new Masters 1000 event, the inaugural edition of which is planned for 2028.

“And we haven’t heard anything about putting on a new Masters 1000. No one’s grumbled about that because there’s a huge amount of dollars going into that tournament,” he added.

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**Carlos Alcaraz Defends Participation in Exhibition Events**

Despite his frequent criticisms of the lengthy tennis calendar, Carlos Alcaraz has faced backlash for seemingly adding to his workload by participating in numerous exhibition tournaments. Earlier this year, during a press conference at the Six Kings Slam exhibition event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the six-time Major champion defended his involvement.

Alcaraz explained that exhibitions are nowhere near as physically and mentally taxing as competitive tournaments. He said,
“Obviously I understand [the criticism], but sometimes people don’t understand us, our opinions. When I see a lot of people complaining about how we are defending the exhibitions, I don’t understand them because, as I said, it’s not really demanding mentally compared to when we’re having such long events like two weeks or two-and-a-half weeks. It’s really tough.”

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Both Carlos Alcaraz and Taylor Fritz are currently in Turin, Italy, competing at the year-end ATP Finals as they continue their respective campaigns.
https://www.sportskeeda.com/tennis/news-after-carlos-alcaraz-taylor-fritz-s-schedule-complaints-ex-atp-pro-delivers-unacceptable-verdict-questioning-stance-towards-saudi-masters