Taylor Fritz trashes new off-court coaching rules for ATP, believes it will take away what makes tennis a "cool, unique" sport

American tennis sensation Taylor Fritz isn't down with the new off-court coaching rule that will come into effect on the ATP and WTA tours from January 1, 2025, onwards. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) released the official notification about the same in October 2024.

The rule will allow coaches to advise their players through words or gestures from the stands at anytime in a match except during a rally. The move drew mixed reactions from the tennis world when it was announced, with World No. 5 Fritz expressing his disapproval.

Moments after his win over Russia's Daniil Medvedev (6-4, 6-3) in the 2024 ATP Finals opener in Turin, Italy, Fritz was asked to elaborate on his viewpoint further during his press conference. He trashed the concept, saying:

"I think one thing that makes tennis such a unique sport, such a cool sport, is it's genuinely as mental as it is physical. It's a big, key part, in my opinion, to be able to figure things out and strategize by yourself. People change things that they're doing on the court to adjust to the opponent," Fritz said.

Reiterating the aspect of the 'mind battle' the players indulged in on the court, the American said:

"You see things differently when you're not playing the match sometimes. I just think 'one versus one' part of tennis where not only are you playing against each other, you're also having this mind battle almost against each other. It's such a big part of the game. That's something that should be between the two players."

---

Taylor Fritz: "I have no problem with it in team events... the rest of the season, it just makes no sense to me"

Taylor Fritz (Getty)

Further, during the same press conference at the 2024 ATP Finals in Turin, Taylor Fritz put strategizing on the same scale as smashing a forehand or a serve, thus, equating mental assistance from the coach with the bizarre idea of the trainer walking down to the court and replacing the player during the course of play.

"I think being able to make strategies, how you handle decision making, coming up with these kind of things under pressure is just as important as hitting a serve or hitting a forehand," Fritz said.

"It would be insane if someone could come on the court for you and serve, right? So why can someone tell you what to do? That's just how I feel. I compare it to the same as everything else you're doing on the court. Why would anyone be helping you?" he added,

The 27-year-old was, however, open to accepting the rule in team competitions but not on the singles circuits:

"I have no problem with it in team events like United Cup, Davis Cup, Laver Cup. That makes sense. Coaching, okay. Individual, the rest of the season, it just makes no sense to me."

Notably, Canada's Denis Shapovalov seems to be on board with Taylor Fritz on the issue as the former also complained about the change.

In Turin, Taylor Fritz is up against World No. 1 Jannik Sinner for a round-robin match in Ille Nastase Group on November 12.