What tournaments could Alcaraz skip?

Carlos Alcaraz has revealed one of the major issues in current tennis: the ATP calendar. The Spaniard has already indicated that in the future he intends to take breaks of one or two months, even if that means giving up important tournaments. The question is where he can find those gaps when the tour requires the best players to coexist with the four Grand Slams, eight mandatory Masters 1000, the ATP Finals, and the Davis Cup finals.

Alcaraz explained it clearly last night at the US Open during his press conference. His absence was much longer than desired, but it also allowed him to see what happens when a player steps away for several months from a wheel that practically never stops turning. His detailed conclusion is that it is impossible to compete for about 40 weeks each year continuously.

And the problem is not simply that there are many tournaments; it is that the major blocks of the calendar are so linked that taking one or two complete months inevitably means sacrificing an entire tour.

Carlos Alcaraz has very few real gaps in the ATP calendar

A typical calendar for a player of Carlos Alcaraz's level begins practically in the first days of January and can end in late November. In between are four Grand Slams, the Masters 1000, ATP 500 needed to meet regulatory requirements, the ATP Finals, not to mention the Davis Cup finals.

The Australian Open occupies much of January. February seemingly offers a bit more freedom, but it is crowded with ATP 500 events like Rotterdam, Doha, Dubai, Rio de Janeiro, or Acapulco. Then comes one of the first major bottlenecks of the season: Indian Wells and Miami, two consecutive Masters 1000 that effectively turn almost all of March into a U.S. tour.

Clay does not offer much respite either. Monte Carlo —the only Masters 1000 whose participation does not fall under the same obligations as the others— kicks off the big clay season, before linking to Barcelona, Madrid, Rome, and the French Open. Between late April and early June, any extended break means sacrificing several important tournaments.

Alcaraz has suffered injuries during this tour by trying to play Monte Carlo and Barcelona without rest. The most logical thing is that for 2027, he will have to choose only one between these two tournaments, possibly leaning towards debuting in the clay tour at home, where he hasn't won since 2024.

Then comes grass, with barely three weeks between the French Open and Wimbledon. And once London is over, there may be the most obvious space for Alcaraz to apply his new philosophy.

The North American summer tour is one of the places where he has already shown he is willing to cut back. Between Canada and Cincinnati, two almost consecutive Masters 1000 are played before the US Open. If a player wants to arrive fresh in New York after Wimbledon, forgoing Canada, Cincinnati, or even both represents one of the few ways to create a significant block of rest. That could indeed be the month he is asking for to take a break.

In fact, August appears to be one of the most sacrificial months. Alcaraz has already missed Masters 1000 events during that part of the season on several occasions, and the sporting cost may be bearable if the priority is to protect his body for the US Open and the end of the year. In fact, one only has to look at how burned out his rivals arrive at this tournament, with many in the infirmary, like Sinner, or in poor shape, while he arrives firing on all cylinders after working on his fitness over the past month and a half.

The next major block starts in Asia. After New York, tournaments like Beijing or Tokyo, Shanghai, and later Paris follow, before the ATP Finals and the final Davis Cup commitments. Another lengthy period without too many natural windows to disappear for eight weeks.

Yesterday, Alcaraz said in the press that he would not hesitate to take “one or two months off” in the future.

He has realized that a break sometimes is great for disconnecting. Resting the mind is just as good as training. Even more.

The problem is the following... pic.twitter.com/743ZORE4cp

— José Morón (@jmgmoron) September 3, 2026

The calendar for Alcaraz will be even more challenging from 2028

The situation may become even more complicated. The ATP confirmed the creation of a tenth Masters 1000 in Saudi Arabia, scheduled to start from 2028. It will be the first expansion of this category since its inception and will join Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo, Madrid, Rome, Canada, Cincinnati, Shanghai, and Paris.

Its definitive week has not yet been publicly set, so any specific location should be treated as a forecast. However, from Punto de Break we have learned that the most ideal timing is likely to be February, precisely one of the few months that still offers some leeway for creating breaks.

Currently, that area of the calendar is already very crowded. In 2026, for example, Doha appears as an ATP 500 from February 16 to 22 and Dubai from February 23 to March 1, just before the start of Indian Wells on March 4.

Reports close to confirmation suggest that Acapulco and Los Cabos will disappear from the ATP calendar, while Rio and Buenos Aires will switch to hard courts. Santiago and other Latin American clay tournaments will change their spots on the calendar.

If Saudi Arabia ends up being inserted into that Middle Eastern tour, the pressure will increase even more. A setup with a prior ATP 500 —Doha or Dubai— followed by the new Saudi Masters 1000 would turn February into another block of maximum demand before traveling directly to Indian Wells and Miami.

In other words, there could be a chain close to ATP 500 + Saudi Masters 1000 + Indian Wells + Miami in just a few weeks. What is currently considered a reasonable window for rest would practically disappear.

Another clear possibility arises for Alcaraz, which would be to sacrifice February. Or, at least, a large part of it. After the Australian Open, he could take several weeks without competing and reappear directly for Indian Wells. The downside is evident, as with the arrival of the Saudi Masters 1000, doing so would mean forgoing another top-tier tournament.

This is exactly the dilemma Alcaraz faces

“In the future, I will take some breaks, some long pauses. Perhaps not four months, but one or two months, missing some tournaments, because it is impossible to play them all,” he commented at the press conference at this US Open. An eight-week break does not fit naturally in the current circuit.

Without a break in February, he might disappear after Wimbledon, but he would have to forgo Canada and Cincinnati. He could do it after the US Open, but would lose much of the Asian tour and possibly Shanghai. And resting during the spring would directly imply missing Madrid, Rome, or the French Open.

Additionally, there are the ATP Finals and the Davis Cup, which extend the year until November for the best players.

Therefore, it is likely that Carlos Alcaraz's future calendar will not consist of playing everything and adding breaks in between. He will have to first choose the major objectives and build his competition periods around them.

The Grand Slams seem untouchable. It will also be difficult to regularly forgo Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid, or Rome. But Canada, Cincinnati, Shanghai, Paris, and certain ATP 500 events could become movable pieces depending on how he arrives physically to each part of the season.

And from 2028 there will be one more piece to fit in.

The ATP will continue to elevate the value of its major events, while players will increasingly need weeks without competing. Alcaraz has already made it clear where his priority will lie when both things conflict. If he has to miss tournaments to protect his body, he will do so.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, ¿Qué torneos podría saltarse Alcaraz?