Alcaraz’s incoherent speech on the ATP calendar

The Spaniard criticizes an overly busy schedule but plays exhibition matches. He also forgets that other less wealthy tennis players need to earn their daily bread.

Simon Häring / ch media

In 2022, Carlos Alcaraz won the US Open at the age of 19 and became the youngest world number 1 in men’s tennis history. Since then, he has won three more Grand Slam tournaments. The economic magazine Forbes estimates its revenue at $42 million last year alone. “Only” a little over ten million came from his winnings on the circuit.

The rest – that is to say triple – comes largely from the advertisements for which the Spaniard lends his image. But nothing allows this gifted player to earn so much money in such a short time than exhibition matches. And in fact, Carlos Alcaraz is sure to fill his pockets soon: from October 16 to 19, he will participate in the Six Kings Slam in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia.

The poster for this event is a dream. In addition to Alcaraz, these five stars will be there:

Of the millions dollars and a trick

But in the Gulf country, it will not be about points for the world rankings, nor sporting merits, but indeed about money.

That’s twice as much as Alcaraz received for her Wimbledon title this year.

Simultaneously with the Saudi gala event, competitors from these “six kings” will compete in tournaments in Antwerp, Stockholm and Almaty (Kazakhstan). For a coronation, points in the ATP ranking and a prize money relatively paltry 150,000 Swiss francs for the respective winner. These three tournaments belong to the ATP 250 category, the lowest on the circuit.

In Saudi Arabia, matches will only take place on three days out of four, with the final taking place after a day of rest. A tip from the organizers. Indeed, ATP regulations prohibit tennis players from participating in “unofficial events” that take place on “three or more consecutive days” during the season.

Those who do not follow this rule lose their “Platinum status”. The latter allows players to access the bonus pool at the end of the year as well as pension contributions. The bonus pool is a kind of participation in the profits of tournaments. In 2023, he accumulated a record sum of $33.5 million, shared between the tennis players. The manner of distribution has not been made public.

“The health of the players is in danger»

The Laver Cup (founded and organized by Roger Federer), which took place from September 20 to 22 in Berlin, also offers great prizes: the participation bonuses are high and each member of the victorious team receives 250,000 francs . This competition, where only the small circle of the very best players in the world participates, is intended to be exclusive. Carlos Alcaraz was there, and he made very clear comments:

The 21-year-old Spaniard responded to the question of whether the tennis season was not overloaded. A criticism to which Alexander Zverev joined. “The health of the players is in danger. This cannot continue like this”declared the German, who has also already taken part in the gala matches in Saudi Arabia. Between the end of December 2024 and mid-November 2025, 70 tournaments in different categories will be organized.

Players ranked in the world top 30 are required to participate in eight or nine Masters 1000s in addition to Grand Slam tournaments, unless they are injured. Tennis players over the age of 30, who have played more than 600 matches on the ATP circuit and who have been playing for more than 12 years are exempt.

Those who fail to fulfill their obligations without valid reason (injury) will see their share of the end-of-year bonus (up to $3 million per player) reduced. There are no other consequences.

Egoism and absurdity

These statements from Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev make you think they are selfish. Or, at the very least, insensitive to the condition of a large part of their peers.

Yes, the criticisms of the Spaniard and the German towards the calendar are enough to irritate, because they do not take into account the situation of players less well classified or currently stopped (injuries), who do not have no income if tournaments are removed. Because these players, unlike superstars, have few or no sponsors and are not invited to Saudi Arabia for millions to play gala matches.

The cry of Alcaraz and Zverev is also absurd and incoherent: they point the finger at an overloaded schedule but make their schedule heavier by participating in events like the Laver Cup and exhibition matches in Saudi Arabia, which they play voluntarily because they are well paid.

Alcaraz, for example, played against Rafael Nadal in March in Las Vegas (a gala event organized by Netflix, which the platform broadcast live), although he had to retire the previous week in the first round of the ATP tournament in Rio due to an ankle injury.

World number 1, Jannik Sinner, is more lucid:

Novak Djokovic is also clear-sighted about calendar management. The Serbian (37) recently announced that he now wanted to concentrate almost exclusively on the Grand Slams and the matches where he represents his country. And if a sheikh attracts him with his millions of petrodollars, he flies to Saudi Arabia for a few days but does not complain about the schedule.

Translation and adaptation into French: Yoann Graber