The decision-makers of tennis know that summer wins. The problem is that the approach makes playing the sport more difficult for players. Even worse, the month of August is especially brutal.
Blame should go to the Canadian Open for that, and to a lesser degree, the Cincinnati Open. Because 1000 events now stretch to almost two weeks, players like Naomi Osaka often choose one over the other. The difference with the Canada and Ohio tournaments is that they literally overlap.
Osaka played in Toronto and reached the quarterfinals before losing to Elena Rybakina. That level of success meant she only had a few days to catch a flight to Cincinnati and then participate in another 1000 tournament.
Naomi Osaka's Cincinnati Open withdrawal proves a tennis problem
Instead, she chose to withdraw from Cincy, citing "fatigue." She's right, of course. If she isn't tired currently, she certainly will be after a run of matches (hopefully) in the WTA 1000 in Ohio. That would mean she doesn't have a lot of rest before playing in an even more important event: The US Open.
As opposed to every other major, the US Open has a 1000 tournament just a week before the major begins. Even further, by the time the Canadian Open ends, there are only about two weeks between the finish of the tournament in Canada, another full 1000 event is played, and then the final major of the year begins. That is silly.
Still, the schedule is played that way because of money. The weather might be hot, but otherwise, there are not normally too many concerns in the northeastern part of North America in August until mid-September.
This means matches aren't halted too much because of rain, fans show up, and most importantly, those fans spend money. The outcome is that the tournaments make cash, which is what matters most, at least ot them.
If the players are negatively affected, the tournaments don't really care, especially the Canadian Open. The tournament might say it does, but how else does one explain pushing the end of the event into the beginning of the Cincinnati Open, not holding the finals on a Saturday or Sunday, and having those last matches played at night?
No wonder so many players have chosen recently to skip going to Toronto and Montreal. If they do make a deep run only to take a late flight to the next sub-major, and not have any real rest, why play? The prize money ir good and the ranking points are solid, but at some point, one's health becomes more important.
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