'Third Set Up To 12 Points': Azarenka Calls For Shorter Matches Amid Scheduling Incidents
WTA
Victoria Azarenka was outspoken in her voice and choice words as the championed the idea of having shorter matches in order to boost early time slots across all match day courts.
Speaking following her straight sets win over Barbora Krejcikova at the 2023 Cincinnati Masters, Azarenka discussed a range of topics including scheduling reforms and advocated for shorter matches amid the increased physicality in the sport and late-night starts of matches.
Azarenka also delved into detail about the recurring frustrations of being the WTA's high-profile Player Council member. In her post-match press conference, Azarenka offered her insights into the scheduling farce that tarnished a prestigious WTA 1000 event in Montreal last week.
Azarenka is of the view that night sessions should start earlier, preferably at 6 pm, and called for tournament officials to make use of outside show courts as a contingency plan to clear the backlog of matches scheduled primarily on Center Court.
"The night matches have to start earlier: 6 PM, 8:30 PM slots. We have to have other courts having night matches because, I understand if there’s no match on Center Court, it’s difficult for the tournament. But we need to have a back-up that can be moved to another court. We need to expend a little production on other courts to make sure we cover more for the World Feed and for the TV."
"I believe that would help a little bit more, and we won’t be talking about this every week. If tennis can help itself to have slots of time where we can market, it would be much easier for the tournament."
The workaround for this idea is that matches should be shorter according to Azarenka. With additional time slots on multiple courts, there are lesser chances of matches spilling over into the late hours, leaving players physically and mentally at a disadvantage in their next outing.
While she respects the traditions and the scoring format, Azarenka believes shorter matches won't harm the sport's reputation or the match as a spectacle. She challenged the sport's governing bodies to be innovative in this case, even though the repercussions are unlikely to be so positive.
"I don’t know how it will be received, but if matches could be a little bit shorter. I think the quality of the competition won’t be affected that extremely. There’s tradition, but I don’t think it would change the game to the point where it’s unrecognizable. Maybe a third set is up to 12 points. There has to be some innovation possible.”
