Taylor Fritz Slams ATP’s New Rule After Being Forced to Play Citi Open: “Would’ve Opted Out of It”

Taylor Fritz will be squaring off against Roberto Carballes Baena in the opening round of the Canadian Open.

Taylor Fritz Slams ATP’s New Rule After Being Forced to Play Citi Open: “Would’ve Opted Out of It”

Taylor Fritz (Image via X/Wimbledon)

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Taylor Fritz would’ve skipped the Citi Open if it wasn’t for the new ATP rule. As per the rule, players have to feature in at least four ATP 500 events, including one after the US Open.

Before the Citi Open, the American ace had played only in two ATP 500 events- the Queen’s Club Championships and the Dallas Open, where he lost to Corentin Moutet in the opening round and Denis Shapovalov in the fourth round, respectively. In Washington, his run was ended by eventual runner-up Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the quarterfinals.

Fritz is in Toronto for the Canadian Open, where he is pitted against Roberto Carballes Baena in his opening round. In the pre-tournament press conference, the World No.4 criticized the ATP rule for forcing him to feature in the Citi Open.

I mean, this is a tough part of the year because there’s not really any weeks that make sense to take off. It’s 1000s, and to be honest, last week, and don’t get me wrong, I really like DC and I like playing the tournament, but with how busy my grass court schedule was, I would have probably opted out of it. But there’s a new rule: you have to play a certain number of 500 events, or you get a zero on your record.

Fritz played four grass-court tournaments, winning two – the Stuttgart Open by beating Alexander Zverev and his career’s fourth Eastbourne International trophy by defeating compatriot Jenson Brooksby. At Wimbledon, his campaign was ended by Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals.

Taylor Fritz claims Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are beatable

Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have won the last seven Grand Slam titles. Since 2024, Sinner and Alcaraz have become the reason behind Taylor Fritz‘s exit in two Grand Slam events.

Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz (3)
Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz (Image via X/Jannik Sinner HQ)

Last year, Sinner had breezed past the 27-year-old in the US Open final. Fritz then progressed to the last four of Wimbledon for the first time this season but failed to overcome Alcaraz. Fritz has lost the three matches he has played against the five-time Grand Slam champion. Against the Italian ace, Fritz trails 1-4 in the head-to-head matchups.

His lone win came in their first encounter in the fourth round of the 2021 Indian Wells. In the pre-tournament press conference in Toronto, Fritz claimed the two young Grand Slam champions are beatable in certain conditions.

In the right conditions, like a fairly fast court, I feel they are both beatable. If the right conditions are there, if they are not playing at their best. You win the important points, or you have a great serving day, and they are a bit off; they are very beatable. If you want to tell me how beatable they are when they are at their best, then that’s a bit different.

Sinner and Alcaraz have both decided to skip the Canadian Open. The Spaniard had also skipped it last year, while Sinner suffered a three-set defeat to eventual runner-up Andrey Rublev in the quarterfinals.

This season, Sinner and Alcaraz have lifted two and five titles, respectively. Both of Sinner’s trophies came in Grand Slam events (Australian Open and Wimbledon). Alcaraz emerged victorious in Rotterdam, Monte Carlo, Rome, Paris, and London (Queen’s Club Championships).

Sinner became the Wimbledon champion by securing a four-set win over Alcaraz, who had denied the four-time Grand Slam champion his first French Open title with a five-set win in the final. The World No.1 and the World No.2 will next be participating at the Cincinnati Masters, which Sinner will play as the defending champion. Alcaraz had suffered an opening-round exit in the event last year.

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