Aryna Sabalenka echoes Coco Gauff with WTA Tour change call

Aryna Sabalenka booked her place in the quarter-finals at Indian Wells with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Naomi Osaka.

After the match, the Belarusian star went backstage for her post-match press conference.

During the session, she was asked about her thoughts on the schedule after skipping two WTA 1000 events in the Middle East.

As straightforward as ever, Sabalenka did not hold back in calling for changes to be made to the WTA calendar, echoing a similar request made by Coco Gauff.

Aryna Sabalenka calls for February break after the Australian Open

“Scheduling tournaments? Yeah. Well, it’s a tough question,” she replied.

“Me, personally, I wouldn’t have any tournaments in February after the Australian Open.

“But, you know, scheduling is such a tough thing.”

She went on to criticise the WTA Tour’s rules around mandatory events.

“I would just take off this mandatory situation, because if you go far in one tournament, you just physically, it’s not good for your health to go and play another one because it’s mandatory,” she said.

“I would just take off this mandatory situation and then let the player choose where they want to compete and play, because if you make it far, the Australian Open, it’s too soon to play the Middle East swing.

“So I feel like the mandatory situation, it’s too much, like, we got to just lower that number.

“It’s too much.”

This year, Sabalenka opted out of both WTA 1000 events held in the Middle East.

Several other top-10 players also skipped at least one of the Doha and Dubai tournaments.

WTA’s ‘mandatory’ tournament rules explained

According to the current WTA Tour rulebook, players are required to participate in all 10 WTA 1000 events if they qualify.

It reads: “All players must play the WTA Tournaments below [WTA 1000s] if they are accepted, or would have been accepted if they had entered or been eligible to enter, into the Singles Main Draw at the Tournament’s entry deadline.

“A player will receive a zero (0) ranking point result for each Commitment Tournament she does not play, which must count on her WTA Singles Ranking.”

This system is in place to ensure that top-ranked players consistently appear at major events throughout the season. However, it also limits players’ flexibility in managing their schedules and addressing workload concerns.

A reduction from 10 mandatory events to eight could alleviate some of these issues.

While there is no immediate indication of change on the horizon, pressure from leading players may eventually force a rethink. It is a topic likely to remain in focus as more voices speak up during the season.

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