Andy Roddick expressed concerns about the demanding ATP calendar, which is causing fatigue and injuries among players. Alongside the former World No. 1, many others on the Tour have also criticized the schedule.
Recently, Holger Rune suffered a complete rupture of his Achilles tendon at the proximal part while competing in the semifinals at the 2025 Stockholm Open. During the ATP 250 hard-court tournament in Sweden, he won his first two matches against Márton Fucsovics and Tomás Martín Etcheverry.
In the semifinals match against Ugo Humbert, the former World No. 4 experienced a leg injury in the second set, which forced him to retire from the match.
What Did Andy Roddick Say About the Demanding ATP Calendar?
Following the incident in Sweden, Rune took to social media and revealed that he had torn his Achilles tendon, requiring surgery and an extensive rehabilitation period that will keep him off the court for a significant amount of time.
In a recent episode of the “Served with Andy Roddick” podcast, Roddick discussed the increasing number of injuries and the evident fatigue players are experiencing as the tennis season draws to a close.
The former US Open champion acknowledged that while not every injury is solely due to the schedule, it would be unwise to disregard the impact of the demanding ATP calendar on players’ health. Roddick also stated that he could “definitively” say the current schedule does not benefit players’ health in any way.
“It doesn’t mean that every injury is because of the schedule. We’d be absolute idiots not to say, “Why don’t we have spacing? Why can’t we create a schedule for the players’ health?” I’m not saying that like Holger did this definitely because of the schedule. I can say definitively that this schedule is helping absolutely nobody’s health,” Roddick said.
In addition to Roddick, Casper Ruud also criticized the ATP schedule in light of Rune’s injury at the 2025 Stockholm Open.
Holger Rune’s Mother Aneke Also Criticized Hectic ATP Schedule After His Injury
After Rune suffered the injury at the 2025 Stockholm Open, his mother, Aneke Rune, expressed her concerns to DR Sporten, criticizing the hectic ATP calendar. She asserted that her son’s injury was a direct result of the grueling schedule imposed by the ATP.
“Now Holger is the latest victim in the line of injured players. An injury that most often comes from fatigue. It is unacceptable that you do not take the players’ well-being into account to a greater extent, but simply put more and more pressure on them,” Aneke wrote.
Aneke expressed that the ATP calendar creates “unrealistic pressure” on players, ultimately leading to injuries.
“I don’t think it’s coherent, and I think that there is unrealistic pressure being put on the players, which in the worst case could lead to the use of inappropriate methods to keep up with the ATP calendar. These are old-fashioned punishment methods, and they have no place in 2025,” she added.
Following his appearance at the 2025 Stockholm Open, Rune was scheduled to compete at the Swiss Indoors. However, he had to withdraw from the tournament and prematurely end his tennis season due to the injury he sustained in Sweden.
