As watershed tennis events go, the recent Korea Open in Seoul become the first WTA 500 tournament on the Asian peninsula, leveling up from a 250. The event also produced another historic first when eight players, including world No. 1 Iga Swiatek and No. 3 Jessica Pegula, withdrew for an assortment of reasons.
Welcome to post-US Open tennis.
The following week, another parade of stars—nine, this time, led by the ailing Elina Svitolina and Emma Raducanu—walked away from the top-tier China Open. Draws were more stable on the ATP side of the fence, yet Carlos Alcaraz generated headlines recently when he complained about the length of the season.
“There is a lot of tournaments during the year, mandatory tournaments, and probably during the next few years gonna be even more,” remarked the 21-year-old. “So, I mean, probably they are going to kill us in some way.”
Complaints by the pros about the toll exacted by tennis’ roughly 11-month grind are an annual ritual, but the range of reasons for withdrawals (injury, mental health, fatigue) has become so broad that it may be approaching critical mass. Let’s look at the big picture.
