National Bank Open's longer format is bad news for tennis fans, players: experts

CBC

2 days ago

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Toronto tennis fans were served up disappointment after the likes of Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and other top players dropped out of the National Bank Open this year — a trend experts say could repeat if the tournament structure doesn't change.
The National Bank Open (NBO) expanded from one week to 12-days of competition, with the men facing off in Toronto and the women in Montreal from July 26 to Aug. 7.
This year the tournament comes two weeks after Wimbledon and is immediately followed by the Cincinnati Open and the U.S. Open a week after that.
The change limits the amount of rest time for top players, said Gill Gross, tennis commentator with Monday Match Analysis.
"Tennis is played 11 months out of the year. So, it is a grind for these players as is, but the expansion of the Masters 1000 to two-week events has actually made it worse," he said.
"They're spending more days out of the year at tournaments, living in hotels, out of suitcases, living with the anxiety that they feel just in that tournament mode, instead of being at home."
Gross and a former professional Canadian tennis player both say the NBO will continue to see withdrawals from tennis stars in the future if the elongated Masters 1000 schedule isn't changed.
While NBO Toronto tournament director Karl Hale says he's excited for the new format, he says they will discuss possible changes with the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP).
"We're going to have talks with the tours about how we can mitigate against this, so we have some really good ideas," Hale said.
"I just think the 12 days is bigger, better for the tournament, for the fans, more broadcasts … more kids watching and participating in tennis. So I think it's better for tennis in Canada."
Hale says Wimbledon's earlier schedule means players will have a longer break period ahead of the NBO next year.
World No. 1 Sinner, No. 2 Alcaraz, 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic and world No. 5 Jack Draper pulled out of the ATP Masters-level hardcourt event earlier this week, citing injuries.
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Gross says the NBO's expansion from one to two weeks of competitions initially seemed like a good idea, with more games for fans and more money for tournaments.
"The rationale originally was you stretch out the premium product … that is your money-making product," he said, adding days off between matches initially seemed to address the needed rest time for players.
Instead, former tennis player Bobby Mahal says players prefer weeks of rest ahead of the Masters and the U.S. Open.
"That rest period is so crucial because you have got to remember that Sinner and Alcaraz played in the French Open, then they go all the way to the Wimbledon final," he said.
However, Mahal says the changing lineup is good news for Canadian players and fans.
"We can now watch the event and cheer on the Canadians. I think we have got two Canadians in the top 30 now with legitimate chances for deep runs in Felix (Auger-Aliassime) and Denis (Shapovalov)," he said.
'These kids have trained in Canada their whole life … so that hometown crowd plus the hometown conditions is a huge factor that can help them."
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Hale says he's also hoping for a Canadian victory, similar to Bianca Andreescu's win at the NBO in 2019.
"The tour is really tough and injuries are part of the tour and it benefits the Canadians. So we're looking forward to the Canadians coming of age this year," he said.