Carlos Bernardes has seen it all happen throughout his tenure as a chair umpire.
Bernardes was a chair umpire for over 30 years, putting himself in the centre of the action.
While he is a very respected individual on tour, Bernardes was also involved in famous conflicts with both Rafael Nadal and Nick Kyrgios.
While Bernardes is no longer an umpire after retiring last year, he still has some strong opinions on what needs to change in the sport.
Carlos Bernardes calls for tennis to make a big change
One year on from saying farewell to tennis, Bernardes has spoken to Ubitennis about a plethora of topics.
There are often complaints about the current tennis landscape, mostly related to the schedule, but Bernardes actually has an issue with the time of matches.
This is something that Patrick Mouratoglou’s Ultimate Tennis Showdown event has tried to combat, but Bernardes suggested he is not a fan of this format.
“It’s hard to think of a rule that could radically change tennis. One of the main problems in tennis is time,” said Bernardes. “If you watch a match, it can last 40-50 minutes or 4-5 hours, and this problem of not knowing when it starts and ends, what you can do in the meantime, is the complex part of this sport.
“Finding a solution to time would make tennis more attractive for future generations. There are tournaments that are trying to experiment with something in this direction, but they’re still exhibitions and I don’t like them very much.
“All the organizations need to sit down together to find a solution to this, without changing the sport too much, but making it more attractive for people.”
Who would be on your Mount Rushmore of tennis players?
Carlos Bernardes says what he thought about Jannik Sinner thanking him at the 2024 ATP Finals
One of the final tournaments of Bernardes’ career came at the ATP Finals in Turin last year, where he was actually the chair umpire for the final.
After Jannik Sinner beat Taylor Fritz to win the ATP Finals, the Italian even mentioned Bernardes in his post-match speech.
Who is your favorite ATP player right now?
When looking back on that moment, Bernardes appeared very grateful for Sinner’s words, before speaking about the current state of Italian tennis.
“2024 was very special because ending with that match and those words from Sinner, with the affection of the other players, the coaches, and the people who worked with me for all those years was really nice,” said Bernardes. “Sinner’s comment was really nice because the moment he had just won the ATP Finals, he remembered me.
“Italy is going through a very special moment in tennis. I can’t remember a period like this in any other country, and not just on the men’s level.
“It’s wonderful to see that Italian tennis is moving in this direction , although I don’t think Jannik is the only one to be there. [Flavio] Cobolli, [Lorenzo] Musetti, [Jasmine] Paolini, and the doubles players are showing how strong they are on the court and are pushing each other. I hope this continues for many years to come for Italian tennis.”
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
