Alexander Zverev had an interesting exchange with a journalist who suggested that players should stand together to force changes to the ATP calendar.
Zverev teamed up with many of his usual rivals during the recent Laver Cup, including Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev. It was an entertaining event that went down to the wire.
After Zverev completed a great comeback against Frances Tiafoe, Alcaraz sealed Team Europe's first title in three years by crushing the US Open runner-up, Taylor Fritz.
The final day of the Laver Cup also marked the end of Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe's reigns as captains of the two teams. Andre Agassi will take over for Team World in 2025, while Yannick Noah will replace Borg.
After the Laver Cup, the players have no opportunity to rest. Each team's members immediately leave for Beijing or Tokyo to compete at the ATP 500 events in those cities.
More players are starting to voice their frustrations about the length of the tennis calendar. Carlos Alcaraz admitted that the grueling nature of the schedule reduces his enjoyment of the sport.
Zverev also spoke out about the issue, blasting the schedule as unnecessarily long and feeling there is not enough time for the players to rest and recuperate properly between tournaments and during the off-season.
The German gave a blunt view of the ATP when asked whether the players at the Laver Cup were discussing ways to make the calendar more suitable for them, believing the governing body does not care about players' opinions.
"No, the ATP doesn't care about our opinion. It's a money business."
Zverev then got into an exchange with the journalist, who suggested the players should stand together and try to convince the ATP to have fewer mandatory tournaments. The French Open runner-up said players have no control over those matters.
"And then what? Boycott? We're not allowed to boycott. We get fined if we don't play tournaments."
"But you're just saying things that we have no control over. It's not us who decides. We don't want mandatory tournaments..... But if you want to become the world No. 1 and if you want to win Grand Slams and if you want to be the best player in the world, you have to play them."
The journalist suggested that the players could work together to create something better that might suit everybody. However, Zverev also dismissed that assertion, discussing the money and licensing involved with running tournaments.
"No it's not, because there is money involved. Tournament costs, a 250 costs a certain amount of money. 500 costs a certain amount of money. Masters 1000 events, a license costs a certain amount of money."
"You cannot just take them away. You cannot just say, you know what, you don't have a tournament from now. The ATP has to find money to pay back to those tournaments the license that they bought, which is millions and millions and millions of dollars."
Zverev's comments highlight how complicated the conversations about the schedule are. It would be interesting to hear whether other players had any ideas for overcoming the challenges Zverev laid out.
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