NOTEBOOK: ATP hopes to shorten the long tennis grind

Sep 12, 2010, 14:48 GMT

NOTEBOOK: ATP hopes to shorten the long tennis grind =

New York (dpa) - The ATP is hoping to follow the successful example set by the women's WTA by shortening a season which can run up to 11 months annually for players involved in early December Davis Cup finals.

But low-profile ATP boss Adam Helfant admits that the job won't be easy and might even require some kind of a sanction on playing any tennis - including exhibitions - during the proposed end-of-season period.

'There is consensus that we need to do something about it, and even though this is something that's been talked about for a long time, and we haven't made progress. There is a commitment to make progress on it by the end of the year,' Helfant told American media.

The earliest any real progress could be made is 2012 with the 2011 season already locked into place. A decision on concrete steps could come during a board meeting at the year-end championships in London in two months.

Helfant may well be fighting a lone battle, with almost no chance that any of the four Grand Slams would ever consider moving their dates. An attempt half a decade ago to delay the January start of the Australian Open by even as little as a fortnight died quickly.

The ATP wants to give our players more time to take a rest, work on their general conditioning and work on their games, said Helfant.

Novak Djokovic is all for the reduction.

'I've been experiencing a lot of physical and health difficulties in last two, three years playing a very, very busy schedule,' said the Serb.

'Hopefully, it's all going to pay off and were going to get a little bit shorter schedule and a schedule that is going to give us more time off.'

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NOTEBOOK: Gasquet heads to Davis Cup after splitting with coach =

New York (dpa) - Frenchman Richard Gasquet has ended his coaching collaboration with Argentine Gabriel Markus after little more than six months as the pair split at the US Open.

During the brief life of the relationship, Gasquet lost in the first round of the French Open after winning a clay title the week before in Nice, did not play Wimbledon due to injury and got to the fourth round of the US open, where he lost to Davis Cup teammate Gael Monfils.

'I'm honoured to have worked with Richard, we certainly had some success,' former player Markus told French newspaper L'Equipe.

During their coaching spell, Gasquet's ranking rose from outside the Top 50 into the Top 30. Gasquet is already shifting gears for next weekend's Davis Cup semi-final in Lyon against Argentina, joining a squad which includes Monfils, Michael Llodra (who also split with a coach) and new father Gilles Simon.