"You are literally proving my point" - Taylor Fritz hits back at fans after facing backlash for supporting the idea of a premium elite tour in tennis

Taylor Fritz has hit back at fans who criticized him for supporting the idea of a premium elite tour in tennis.

As per recent reports, the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open are considering a premium tour resembling the one in Formula 1. The tour, featuring the top players in the sport, would also include the nine Masters 1000s and the ATP Finals, in addition to the four Majors.

The idea behind the potential reform is to reduce the grueling nature of the sport and create a schedule that is player-friendly as well as easier for fans to follow. A guaranteed salary for the competitors is also being discussed, as per the reports.

Taylor Fritz was recently asked to give his take on the possibility of a premium tour. The American No. 1 backed the idea, stating that such a tour would also ensure that the players didn’t collect ‘tons of points’ across the ATP 250s and 500s. He believes it would lead to an appropriate distribution of ranking points among all competitors.

Fritz, however, faced backlash for his opinion, with several tennis fans claiming that the American himself has benefitted from contesting the lower-level tournaments. The World No. 10 did not appreciate the scrutiny and called out the fans for seemingly misinterpreting his comments.

“Always need a follow up explanation for the people that can’t read…” Taylor Fritz said on X (formerly Twitter).

He then clarified his perspective, reiterating that he wishes to have a more streamlined tour so as to help not just the top-ranked players but also those within the top-120 ranking bracket, similar to how the PGA tour in golf provides a tour card for their well-ranked players.

“When I say separate or premium tour I am NOT saying only top players, as I said in the quote the “main top tour” should be made up of the top 100-120 players kind of like how top 125 in PGA get a tour card,” he wrote. "And at the end of the year some people go down and some people come up into main tour.”

He also addressed his particpation in the ATP 250s.

“Also anyone saying I only have ranking/points cause of 250’s you are literally proving my point, this system would ensure everyone plays same # of tournaments (12/14 marquee events 128 draw) and nobody can complain about how someone got there points/ranking because nobody can pick up points elsewhere,” he continued.

Taylor Fritz further clarified that he was asked to share his view on the subject, so he gave his honest opinion.

“Now I don’t think it will ever happen but I’m asked in an interview so I give my honest opinion, I just think it would make the sport easier to follow from a fan perspective,” Fritz wrote.

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Taylor Fritz played 26 tournaments in 2023

Taylor Fritz at the 2023 Atlanta Open

Among the top 10 players, Taylor Fritz (26) was behind only Alexander Zverev (28) in terms of the number of events played in 2023. The American won two titles – both at the 250 level, in Delray Beach and Atlanta. Fritz collected a considerable number of ranking points by featuring in five other ATP 250s and five ATP 500s as well.

Apart for his success at the lower-level tournaments, the 2022 Indian Wells champion also made noteworthy runs at the 1000-level events. He reached the semifinals in Monte-Carlo and featured in the quarterfinals in Cincinnati, Miami and Indian Wells.

The World No. 10 also made the final eight at the US Open, which was his career's second Grand Slam quater-final after the 2022 Wimbledon Championships.