The current tennis format is incredibly long for both players and fans. The season starts in January and will conclude in the third or fourth week of November. These changes are designed to please both players and fans and to keep players in the sport longer.
Shorter Season
The tennis season is now shorter thanks to the new schedule I've proposed. Instead of ending the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in November, the season will end in the first week of October. This will give players approximately three months to rest, relax, and heal from injuries. Hopefully, this will help players avoid burnout from having to play 10 1/2 to 11 months during the current ATP tour schedule.
Changes to ATP World Tour 500 and 1000 Events
In the past, there have been nine Masters 1000 evens (excluding the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals). Now, there will be eight (8) Masters 1000 tournaments during the season.
Tournaments at Indian Wells and Key Biscayne have been downgraded from 1000 to 500 events. Further, the draws for both tournaments will be reduced from 96 to 48. However, a new Masters 1000 tournament will take place in either Sweden or Switzerland. Switzerland deserves recognition for Roger Federer's accolades and benevolence in and out of tennis. Sweden should receive serious consideration out of respect for past greats of this country such as: Bjorn Borg, Stefan Edberg, and Mats Wilander.
Along with Indian Wells and Key Biscayne, the ATP Masters 500 series also adds an additional tournament in Toronto/Montreal. The tournament will take place in the opposite location of the Masters 1000 tournament in Canada. For example, if the Rogers Cup (as part of the Masters 1000 series) is being held in Montreal, the 500 tournament will take place in Toronto. They will switch locations each year subsequently.
Canada deserves another tournament with the emergence of rising young stars: Milos Raonic, Eugenie Bouchard, and Vasek Pospisil. This will hopefully help the game of tennis grow in Canada.
Changes to Hard Court Season
Since the Australian Open is known as the "Slam of Asia/Pacific", it will be easier for players to continue the "Asian Swing" upon the conclusion of the Australian Open in early February instead of returning to Asia in October. The ATP players will either pay in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Tokyo, or Beijing (or take an additional week off to rest if they desire) before heading to Shanghai for the Shanghai Rolex Masters.
Indian Wells and Key Biscayne have been downgraded because of time constraints. Both tournaments use one full month combined on the ATP calendar. Nevertheless, both events will be held and should remain stronger than ever. In fact, Indian Wells will be available as part of a North American Swing, which includes Acapulco and Delray Beach, in March for players who prefer hard courts.
The indoor hard court season has been reduced by a few weeks because it's unnecessary to have players play an extra two months of hard courts after the U.S. Open's conclusion in September.
Changes to Grass Court Season
The current format for grass court season is obsolete. Thus, I propose adding two extra weeks, including an additional Masters 1000 event in Europe to better prepare players for grass. This tournament will be held in addition to the current tournaments in Halle, Queens, London, Eastbourne, and the Netherlands. This will add additional time for players to make the transition from clay to grass.
The Tournament of Champions
The Tournament of Champions will be similar in format to the tournament of the same name in the WTA. Players will be required to have won at least one tour level tournament during the current season. Ranking points will be at stake and the final rankings will be made public after the conclusion of the tournament.
Post-Season
In a new addition to the ATP, I propose the addition of a non-mandatory post-season. This will give younger players more experience and journeymen an opportunity to finance their respective careers on tour. For players returning from injuries or suspension, it will enable them to test and prepare themselves before the new season in January. However, no ranking points will be at stake because the season will officially be over.
I suggest adding tournaments to countries that lack current ATP and WTA events in order to promote the growth of tennis in their countries and to boost the local economy.
Davis Cup
I recommend turning Davis Cup into an event similar to the Olympics, in which it will be held every four years. This will (1) create bragging rights for the winning country and (2) allow the top players to compete as it will be held perhaps three or four times during a player's career as opposed to the current format of having players play Davis Cup every year. The game is too physical to ask the top stars of tennis to play each round of Davis Cup in addition to the current tournaments they are required to play. In addition, this will add to the prestige of Davis Cup and will create a buss and a sense of anticipation with the crowd.
Davis Cup will be held during the same time of the post-season tournaments as to not interfere with current tournaments during the season.
Elimination of Mandatory Tournaments
The ATP tour is far too grueling to demand players to play a certain number of tournaments. This complicates matters for players by requiring them to play a certain number of tournaments. Players will be required to play all of the Masters tournaments (until they've been on tour for 10 years), but it will be the player's sole discretion as to how many other events they play at the 250 and 500 levels. Top ten players will be eligible to play in as many 500 events as he would like, but will not be allowed to play in more than three (3) ATP 250 events in a single year. If they exceed this number, they will not be rewarded points, but will be permitted to play for prizes and prize money. This prevents players from having inflated rankings from playing weaker competition at the lower levels and acculumating points against players outside the top 20.
Player Exemptions
Players will earn exemptions for tournaments after ten (10) years on tour. It's logical and understandable for the tournaments to want the well-known players at each event for promotional and economic reasons. After a full decade, it will be a player's discretion when and where he plays. Anything prolonging a player's career is good news for players, fans, and the sport.
Other Changes
Dates of tournaments have been changed to save players from unnecessary travel. January and February (with the exception of 500 tournament in Miami) will be played in Australia. Tournaments in March through June will be played predominantly in Europe (although players will have the luxury of playing tournaments elsewhere during this time). Tournaments in July and August will take place in North America. The indoor hard court season will wrap up the season in September.
This provides players the opportunity to choose their surface throughout the year. For example, a player could play on clay after the grass season ends, but might have to travel more in the process.
The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals and the Tournament of Champions will be played on a rotating surface on a yearly basis. The tournament will play on clay, grass, outdoor hard court, and indoor hard court. London will continue to host the indoor hard court final. The other three shall be chosen by a committee.
Conclusion
I accept the fact this fictitious schedule is far from perfect, but it's a start in making changes to shorten the season and lenghtening careers (whether due to injury, burnout, or both). Anticipation can be built properly by having a true off-season.
Lastly, I suggest making the 500 event in Key Biscayne a kick-off celebration of the new tennis season. The tournament will generally be held the first full week of January, and will kick off with an exhibition match between legends. Since it will be a 500 event, it will be optional for players who don't wish to travel to the U.S. at this particular point in time for a tournament.
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