In an ideal world, the Australian Open should be played in March

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More and more tennis players and experts are complaining about the tennis calendar, and the latest to do so has been John Lloyd, a former Grand Slam champion in mixed doubles, who has proposed modifying the circuit so that the Open de Australia is held in March due to the numerous absences at Wimbledon 2026.

Carlos Alcaraz has not played any tournaments for several weeks due to a wrist injury, and the plague of withdrawals on both the ATP and WTA circuits is increasing due to the players barely having any rest. This is why Lloyd believes that the key would be to start the Australian Open a month and a half later to allow for a better preseason, or alternatively, shorten the Grand Slams to best of three sets as is done in other tournaments.

"Things will get worse. In an ideal world —something that will never happen—, the Australian Open should be played in March, but that will never happen. At least, the best solution is for the Grand Slams to be played as best of three sets. It's not just about the physical demands of matches in the Grand Slams, although that is extreme. In my opinion, preparation is the key, and that's where the body suffers," he said in an interview with Tennis365.

The major change in tennis from a few years ago to the present

As Lloyd states, "tennis is one of the most demanding sports there is. In tennis, there is a break at the end of the year, but it actually lasts a maximum of six weeks. People say it's a long time, but it's not. You take two weeks to recharge, and even then, you are still out of energy, and then you have to start preparing for a Grand Slam. You go from being inactive to hitting the extreme to prepare for possibly seven four-hour matches.

For John, this load is too much, especially because the rest of the year you don't get a break at any point. "You finish that one, then you have a week off, and then you have Indian Wells and Miami back-to-back. You have a short break, and then you have to start preparing for Roland Garros and Wimbledon," he acknowledged, explaining the reason why the Australian Open should be moved in order to prioritize the players' health.

In addition, Lloyd has also drawn a comparison between tennis in the past and today to justify why Grand Slams should be best of three sets. "In a best-of-five set match, the physical condition of these guys now… in my time, a best-of-five series is the same as a best-of-three today, in terms of what they do with their bodies and their physique. They are animals, and I mean that in a good way. But they will burn out, and that will happen more and more frequently," he concluded. However, no matter how much he asks for it, it seems unlikely that either of these two things will happen.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, "En un mundo ideal, el Open de Australia debería jugarse en marzo"