"It's just too much" - Grigor Dimitrov condemns "rough" two-week schedule at Italian Open and other events amid rise in injuries

Grigor Dimitrov, competing at the 2024 Italian Open, isn’t too pleased with the scheduling of the Masters 1000 events. The Bulgarian recently discussed the drawbacks of the congested tour, emphasizing its impact on athletes.

Dimitrov has booked his place in the fourth round in Rome, with victories over Yoshihito Nishioka (7-5, 6-4) and Terence Atmane (7-6 (3), 6-3), after an opening-round bye. The eighth seed will take on Taylor Fritz for a place in his third Rome quarterfinal.

A win against Fritz will make the Italian Open Grigor Dimitrov’s most successful claycourt tournament of the season. He was handed a Round-of-16 defeat by Holger Rune at the Monte-Carlo Masters and lost to Jakub Mensik in his opening-match at the Madrid Open.

During his campaign in Rome, the Bulgarian shared his take on the extended claycourt schedule, with the French Open around the corner.

"Yeah, that's a rough go, I think. That's a rough go for everybody," Dimitrov said on the Craig Shapiro podcast.

The Italian Open and the Madrid Open, which were played across one week, with 64 players making the main draw, were restructured in 2023 to incorporate 98 players across 12 days in both men's and women's categories.

While such a structure was previously reserved only for the 1000 events in Indian Wells and Miami, the Cincinnati Open, too, is expected to expand to two weeks from 2025 onwards.

When asked if the players are upset about the new changes, Grigor Dimitrov responded affirmatively:

"Yeah, I think so. Yeah, absolutely (everybody is upset)," he said.

Several players recently noted that the two-week-long 1000 events have been taking a physical toll on their bodies. Iga Swiatek, too, previously shared her worries about the increasingly hectic schedule.

The likes of Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and defending champion Elena Rybakina, also pulled out of the Italian Open due to injuries and illness.

Dimitrov added that while a select few tournaments deserve the two-weeks status, adopting that schedule on claycourts isn’t preferable.

"You know, some tournaments, I believe they have to be (two-weeks-long), but only some. But when it's like this, especially on claycourt, it's very difficult," he said. "It's just too much."

"Just the amount of hours you need to -- forget about the playing part, actually the competing part for a second, but the part where you need to keep your body up to speed, I think it's where it costs more," he added.

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Grigor Dimitrov played through injury in Italian Open 3R win

Grigor Dimitrov pictured at the 2024 Italian Open

The grueling schedule isn’t the only challenge Grigor Dimitrov has had to deal with during his ongoing Italian Open campaign. The Bulgarian rolled his ankle after a nasty fall during his third-round match with Terence Atmane.

While he resumed play, Dimitrov noted that the conditions were “very difficult” to negotate.

"It was a very difficult match. Probably one of the most difficult matches this year. The conditions were so difficult. I rolled my ankle on one side, there was not much clay left," he said after his match as per the ATP Tour.

Dimitrov wasn’t the only player who slipped on the claycourts of Rome. Rafael Nadal and Andrey Rublev suffered similar falls during their matches.