Andy Roddick said yesterday the ATP (Association of Tennis Professional) was wearing out its top players, warning that a men’s tennis schedule without a proper off-season was asking for trouble.
Roddick said that the ATP could be heading for a clash with top players if something did not change in an 11-month calendar.
“It’s ridiculous to think you have a professional sport that doesn’t have a legitimate off-season to rest, get healthy, and then train,” he said.
“We’re finished — what is it — Nov. 30 after the season-ending World Tour Finals in London, and have to be pretty much Grand Slam ready by Jan. 4, year after year after year after year,” he said.
TOUGH
“It’s tough to compete 11 months a year, and this is going on my 10th year now. We’ve tried to make our voice heard for a long time. And we end up finishing a little bit later now [this year],” the world No. 6 said.
Roddick said that although top players were generally in agreement about an excess of tennis, only dire circumstances would warrant any type of strike.
“That [a strike] is the last thing that anyone wants to do, but, you get pushed against a wall ... ,” he said.
FANS
“I don’t think any of us wants to do that, because even more so than feeling a responsibility to the powers that be in tennis, we feel a responsibility to the fans,” he said.
“The last thing we want to do is cause something, let’s say, [at] the year-end championships where, [if] you bag that, [it’s] the ATP tour’s biggest moneymaker,” he said.
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