The ATP Tour warned they are making a mistake as they plan change in tennis, ‘I think it’s wrong’

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The complaints directed towards the ATP Tour regarding the calendar have continued.

Carlos Alcaraz has been outspoken against the current ATP schedule, alongside many other players who have been critical of the length of the tennis season.

There has also been some backlash against the likes of Alcaraz, including former Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis calling out tennis players for their complaints.

The latest person to call out the ATP Tour is Tennis Hall of Famer Vijay Amritraj, but his issue is not with the amount of tennis there is.

Vijay Amritraj suggests the ATP Tour are making a mistake

“Not just India. I think every capital in Asia requires an ATP event,” Amritraj told CLAY and RG Media when asked if he thinks India deserve an ATP tournament.

“In the 70s and 80s we had that. We had tournaments in India, we had tournaments in Hong Kong, in Singapore, in Manila, in Bangkok, Tehran, Seoul, Osaka, Tokyo. Today we have nothing!

“When I was president of the ATP, we put the tournament in Dubai and Doha. I was president of the ATP council for four terms. Today we have nothing in Asia. There’s only one license that is owned by an Asian licensee, that’s Tokyo. Seoul is not owned by the licensee, it’s owned by IMG. Hong Kong, which they moved to, is now owned by IMG. So we need tournaments in Asia!

“We need 250s, we don’t need 500s at the moment. We need 250s to be able to keep the game a worldwide sport! It’s a worldwide sport and sometimes they forget that. After football, we are the most popular sport in the world as far as playing in different parts of the world. We need tournaments in Africa. We need more tournaments in South America. This is not a European sport!”

Amritraj is a former top 20 ATP singles player, and was inducted into the Tennis Hall of Fame in 2024 as Contributor, being rewarded for his impact as a global tennis ambassador, including helping popularise tennis in India and Asia.

The 71-year-old is clearly still passionate about this, and believes tennis is making a mistake by focusing too much on Europe and USA.

“One hundred percent, one hundred percent,” Amritraj responded when asked if the ATP are making a mistake. “What are they trying to do? What’s their plan of action?

“For example, they upgraded Dallas and Munich, and I think there’s nothing wrong with that. Somebody wants to put up more money and have a bigger tournament, absolutely. But not at the cost of something else.”

Amritraj then sent a message to the ATP Tour, calling for them to reconsider their intention to reduce the number of 250 tournaments.

The 15-time title winner also highlighted South America as a continent that needs more tournaments, something that a former top 30 player has recently called the ATP out for.

“Look at the rest of the world first. And then upgrade tournaments,” said Amritraj. “ATP wants to reduce the amount of 250 events. I think that’s wrong.

“All the countries in South America need to have a tournament. Bogota used to have a tournament before. Lima should have a tournament. Caracas should have a tournament. I played in Caracas. So where are all those events? There’s room for everyone!”

How many tournaments on the ATP Tour are in Europe and North America?

Amritraj’s point about the ATP Tour focusing on Europe and North America is highlighted by the 2026 calendar.

Of the 62 tournaments on the schedule for next year, over half of them are taking place in Europe.

North America is second with 12 tournaments, followed by Asia (9), then Oceania (5) and then South America (3).

The only tournament currently held in Africa is an ATP 250 in Marrakech, Morocco, which was won by Italian player Luciano Darderi this year.

This is a similar issue to the WTA Tour, who also only have one tournament taking place in Africa, which is the 250 event in the Moroccan capital of Rabat.

There are also concerns relating to the Laver Cup, which has only ever been held in Europe or North America, despite being pitted as Team Europe vs Team World.