By Chris Oddo | Tuesday October 3, 2017

 

Milos Raonic aired out his grievances with the ATP's grueling schedule after a win in Tokyo on Tuesday.

Photo Source: AP

Milos Raonic is back in action at the Rakuten Japan Open, but the Maple Leaf Missile isn’t exactly in the best mood. After a long, disappointing season that has seen Raonic suffer a plethora of injuries, Raonic spoke out to reporters on Tuesday in Tokyo, espousing for a shorter ATP season in light of all the injuries suffered by himself and peers in 2017.

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“I believe out of those of us that finished top five last year, I’m the only guy still trying to play this year, and none of the top five played the U.S. Open,” Raonic said, according to the AP. “Maybe it’s testament to some kind of reform being needed for the sake of players’ careers, and being able to provide a certain caliber of tennis for spectators.”

Raonic was speaking after a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Viktor Troicki in Tokyo. The No.3-seeded Canadian improved to 29-11 on the season, but he has been hampered by injury and has only played five matches north of Wimbledon. He was forced to pull out of the U.S. Open after undergoing surgery on his left wrist.

In a season that has seen Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Kei Nishikori and Stan Wawrinka all pull the plug early on their season, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have risen, claiming two major titles each.

But Nadal and Federer each had major troubles last season. Federer ended his season immediately after Wimbledon, and Nadal limped to the finish, carrying a nagging wrist injury that limited him to only a handful of events before he too ended his season prematurely.

“Scheduling, the length of the year and how spread out — geographically and throughout the year — the tournaments are, especially the top tournaments for the top players, is something that deserves a second look,” Raonic said. “It’s hard to peak four times of the year for Grand Slams, let alone for other tournaments.”

He added: “Give the players that really stand out mandatory events, give them a chance to play everything within a seven-month period so they can really focus on themselves health-wise, but also on improving, because you need that time. We’re the only sport, outside of golf maybe, that plays as spread out as we do without any time for rest."

Raonic will face Japan's Yuichi Sugita in the second round at Tokyo.