Taylor Fritz snaps back at claims he wants to see a new ‘elite tour’ with strong social media statement
Taylor Fritz has reacted to suggestions that he is supporting a new-look tour that excludes players ranked outside of the top 125 in the rankings.
Tennis is a whirlwind of rumours right now, with Saudi Arabia reported to be ready to financially back a breakaway tennis tour that would include the Grand Slams and the events that are now part of the Masters 1000 series on the ATP Tour.
That breakaway would effectively end the ATP as we know it, yet there is no concrete evidence that such a plan could be executed.
World No 10 Fritz has also thrown his weight behind the idea that the lower-ranked ATP Tour events are not contested by the game’s elite players.
ATP 250 and 500 tournaments are the lower-level ranking events in the men’s game, with tournaments such as the pre-Wimbledon Queen’s Club Championship one of the most prominent ATP 500 tournaments.
Fritz was quoted in the Sydney Morning Herald backing the idea that the game’s top players only play the Grand Slams and Masters 1000 events as he said: “It’s a really good idea, and I think that we should have separate tours.
“If you’re on the main, top tour, you should be set to play all the big events, and they should all be slightly bigger-draw events to get basically everybody in the top 100 in, and I think that’s honestly all we should play.
“You can have 14 marquee events, and it makes tennis easy to follow for fans because all you have to pay attention to is those tournaments. There’s no people getting tons of points in between events, at like 250s and 500s, and more than anything, there’s no crazy schedule for us players.”
Always need a follow up explanation for the people that can’t read… when I say separate or premium tour I am NOT saying only top players, as I said in the quote the “main top tour” should be made up of the top 100-120 players kind of like how top 125 in PGA get a tour card and… https://t.co/JxJegojVSQ
— Taylor Fritz (@Taylor_Fritz97) December 11, 2023
That led to accusations that Fritz was supporting a model that ensured only top players could play in the most lucrative events, making it harder for lower ranked players to break into the top 100.
Yet the American has rejected that theory, as he stated his idea is based on a model that already works well on the US PGA Tour.
“Always need a follow-up explanation for the people that can’t read,” he said on X.
“When I say separate or premium tour I am NOT saying only top players, as I said in the quote the “main top tour” should be made up of the top 100-120 players kind of like how top 125 in PGA get a tour card. At the end of the year, some people go down and some people come up into the main tour.
“Also anyone saying I only have ranking/points cause of 250’s (tournaments) you are literally proving my point.
“This system would ensure everyone plays same number of tournaments (12/14 marquee events 128 draw) and nobody can complain about how someone got their points/ranking because nobody can pick up points elsewhere.
“Now I don’t think it will ever happen but I’m asked in an interview so I give my honest opinion, I just think it would make the sport easier to follow from a fan perspective.”
The dream of breaking into the big-time would appear to be tougher for younger players under the model Fritz is proposing and it may be that his plan only works for the game’s top 20 or 30 players.
As he suggested, the ATP Tour’s drive to fund players in the lower ranks of the game suggests any kind of annual qualifying card would not be an idea that would be embraced, with Fritz’s suggestions making for an interesting talking point.
