The Canadian Open is now in the rearview mirror as tennis continues on the road to the US Open.
2025 marks the start of a new era for the Masters 1000 tournament, as it was extended from seven days to 12.
It came at a price, as some of the game’s biggest names such as Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic did not play in Toronto.
But there was still plenty of excitement for fans as two young stars in Ben Shelton and Victoria Mboko, who both won in Canada to claim their first ATP and WTA 1000 titles.
Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty ImagesCanadian Open tournament director Karl Hale says longer Masters help tennis to compete with other sports
Many of the Masters 1000 events have been extended to 12 days following a change made in 2024.
It has been met with a polarising response, with the likes of Alcaraz and Frances Tiafoe criticising the longer tournament.
But during an appearance on the Nothing Major podcast, the Canadian Open tournament director Karl Hale says the longer events are essential to help tennis compete with other sports, such as basketball and football.
“I think tennis has done so much for us, it’s really important to keep the game at the forefront of the tennis fans and just the general public at large,” Hale said.
“By going to 12 days it keeps our sport and Masters series closer to Grand Slams and also competing against other sports. The NBA just signed a 7.7 billion dollar deal. The Premier League signed a massive deal.
“So these other sports, the delta between us and them is getting better so by going 12 days, you have more broadcasts, more fans and more players, so there are more jobs. It’s really important that all of us in tennis keep our sport at the forefront and grow.”
Photo by Julian Avram/Icon Sportswire via Getty ImagesKarl Hale reacts to complaints made by players about the extended Masters 1000 events
Tiafoe has spoken on occasion about not wanting to be in Europe for a longer period of time due to the extended Masters 1000 events.
On the other hand, the WTA’s world number one Aryna Sabalenka is in favour of the longer tournaments.
Hale commented on the different opinions from players on the change, and he expressed the need to listen to their views and find ways to help players adjust to the new schedule as best they can.
“Full transparency [the player sentiment] is mixed. Some of the players don’t want to be over in North America for six weeks but then the American players don’t want to be over in Europe for two months in April and May,” Hale added.
“You go back and forth and I think that if you look at it from a work standpoint and a job standpoint, you want to be mindful and listen to the players and hear them out and do the best you can to tweak whatever you can to help them, but for example if you ask somebody that is working 9-5pm, do you like working Fridays? They will say no.
“So what do you do? Do you stop working Thursday? You can’t. I think we have to be realistic and hear them and do the best we can but we don’t want to be reactive to every need and want.”