ATP considers longer break
09/08/2010 09:03:09 PM
Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and other stars of men's tennis could soon be enjoying an extended post-season break.
ATP chief executive Adam Helfant announced at the US Open on Wednesday that the tour may be willing to accommodate an extension to its off-season by as much as three weeks.
Some of the sport's biggest names have long demanded a greater period of rest and recuperation, arguing that greater conditioning time between gruelling seasons may prolong their careers.
Helfant remained adamant that no grand slam dates or Davis Cup fixtures would be affected by the changes, meaning the ATP Masters schedule could be altered as a consequence of the review.
"Right now we're considering calendars where there might be as much as a two-week change to the off-season for 2012 and two or three weeks extended off-season for 2013," Helfant said.
"My intention is to put the 2012 and 2013 calendars up for formal consideration by our board at our last board meeting of the year (in London) and see where we are."
"What we're doing is looking at our calendar and trying to find a way to strike the right balance."
"Most of us are convinced that we need to find a way to create a more meaningful off-season for our players so that they have more time to rest, work on their fitness and work on their games."