While the debate about the intense tennis schedule rumbles on, there are some tournaments that players have called to be added to the ATP Tour.
The ATP Tour added a new tournament in Athens this year, which was won by Novak Djokovic after he beat Lorenzo Musetti in the final.
The US Open Mixed Doubles tournament was also added, while other players have long called for a Masters tournament in South America.
Additionally, Andy Murray and Felix Auger-Aliassime have both previously called for a Masters event on a grass court.
Top players have called for the introduction of a grass court Masters tournament
There has been plenty of debate around the introduction of a new Masters tournament on grass due to the short season on the surface.
There are only a select few tournaments on grass, which is headlined by Wimbledon and also features Queen’s, Stuttgart, and Halle.
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Andy Roddick has called for an extended grass schedule, and Murray and Auger-Aliassime believe there should be a Masters 1000 tournament added.
Speaking in 2015, Murray said: “There should be more grass court tennis, I think there should be a Masters 1000 on grass but it’s a good start.”
Nine years later, and Auger-Aliassime shared exactly the same sentiment during an interview with Tennis 365.
“I had a fantastic first two years on grass and I love playing on the surface. It would be great if we could get a Masters event on grass, for sure. “Just trying to find a way to make it happen is the problem as the calendar is already so crowded.”
Why is there not a Masters tournament on grass?
While the players have expressed an interest in a Masters tournament on grass, it could come down to the simple reason of facilities.
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There are only a certain number of venues that can put on grass court tournaments in Europe, and it’s a very perishable surface.
Speaking on Served, Jon Wertheim said: “People always say why don’t we have more Masters 1000s on grass.
“There are a finite number of venues, Wimbledon being one of them that can give you the practice courts, the locker-room facilities, the parking, the hospitality, there’s not a lot of grass venues that could live up to these prerequisites that you [need] to have a Masters.”
The only reasonable way there could be a Masters tournament on grass is if Queen’s was upgraded from its current guise as a 500 event.
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