Tennis’ relentless calendar has been a growing source of frustration for players. But when it comes to the Laver Cup, that hasn’t stopped some of the biggest names in the sport from taking part.
Named after Australian tennis great Rod Laver and co-founded by Roger Federer, the Laver Cup is an annual three-day event that features Team Europe taking on the rest of the world in a concept similar to that of Golf’s Ryder Cup. It is an ATP-sanctioned event, which means organisers have access to its marketing materials and an official spot on the calendar. However, participants will receive financial incentives but no ranking points.
The event features some of the world’s highest-ranked players, but participation is not mandatory. This year’s edition will feature the likes of Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev, Taylor Fritz and Flavio Cobolli. These players, as well as others, have previously spoken about the impact the Tour calendar is having on them and argue it should be shortened.
After returning from a wrist injury, Alcaraz told reporters at the US Open that he plans to miss more tournaments in the future to reduce his risk of injury. Meanwhile, Zverev has previously said the Masters events should return to seven-day events.
Despite this, these top figures are committed to playing in the Laver Cup but for different reasons.
“I love team events, team tournaments,” Alcaraz told reporters in London on Thursday. “Spending time with them, having fun, as you could see the previous year, how much fun I had on the court, off the court.
“It is a week that I might be training, I might be resting or something, but these kinds of weeks help me a lot to bring my joy back on the court, bring my joy back in playing tennis.
“It helps me a lot for the next tournaments when it is not team events.”
Zverev enters the Laver Cup having won the US Open earlier this month and playing in the Davis Cup last weekend. Some might wonder why the German has decided to play another event before the Asian Swing after voicing concerns about a link between playing too many tournaments and players suffering a burnout or injury.
“The Laver Cup is something I always try to play. I am a person that values loyalty quite a lot and the event has been loyal to me. I try to be loyal to them,” Zverev explained earlier this week.
“I enjoy being here. I enjoy being among these team-mates, great guys. I hope to have a great week.”
Since its first edition in 2017, Zverev has missed the event only twice, in 2022 and 2023. This year will be his seventh appearance.
Andre Agassi, captain of Team World, believes the men’s game has gotten more physical than when he played on the Tour and that the calendar should be cut as a result of this. However, he argues any future decision shouldn’t impact the Laver Cup.
“There are times in life when less is more. I think in a lot of cases, tennis can benefit from that,” he said.
“Where the Laver Cup fits? I think this is a fantastic event, and I’d hate to see the compromises come on an event like this, that is hosted under such a magnificent name and person who none of us would be here today without, in this game.
“So this wouldn’t be the place I would choose to cut some edges.”
The winning team in this year’s Laver Cup will be awarded $1.5M, split into $250,000 for each player on the team. This will be in addition to appearance fees, which are awarded to every player in the event.
