{"id":92483,"date":"2025-10-19T14:44:57","date_gmt":"2025-10-19T18:44:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/?p=92483"},"modified":"2025-10-19T14:44:57","modified_gmt":"2025-10-19T18:44:57","slug":"fritz-draper-slam-atp-after-runes-injury","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2025\/10\/19\/fritz-draper-slam-atp-after-runes-injury\/","title":{"rendered":"Fritz and Draper Slam ATP Schedule After Rune\u2019s Achilles Injury"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-pm-slice=\"1 1 []\">A dark cloud hangs over the ATP Tour after <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2025\/10\/18\/holger-rune-suffers-serious-injury-in-stockholm\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Holger Rune suffered a devastating injury during his semifinal match in Stockholm<\/a>. The Dane, who looked poised to reach his first final since April, collapsed mid-point against Ugo Humbert while leading by a set and tied at 2\u20132 in the second.<\/p>\n<p>The 22-year-old felt a pop in his leg and told the physio before retiring from the match. It was devastating for Rune, who was entering his favourite indoor stretch of the season.<\/p>\n<h3>Everyone\u2019s Worst Fear Confirmed<\/h3>\n<p>A day later, Rune confirmed the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DP_T30FiM6A\/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">severity of the injury on social media<\/a>, revealing that his Achilles tendon was completely ruptured and that surgery is already scheduled for next week.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s gonna be a while before I can step on court again. It\u2019s tough. I had so much joy on court in Stockholm and it\u2019s unbearable to think that I will not feel this energy for some time now. My Achilles is fully broken on the proximal part, meaning I need an operation already next week and from here rehabilitation. Thank you for all your support now and always. Without you nothing would be the same. See you as soon as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A full Achilles tear typically requires surgery followed by at least 8\u201312 months of rehabilitation before an athlete can return to high-intensity competition \u2014 meaning Rune could miss most, if not all, of the 2026 season.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"jBaB-zPIQzxoMCFIs_f26Q\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/2241804054\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'jBaB-zPIQzxoMCFIs_f26Q',sig:'VHjYeuSBz_EsVEnkPJUDcnduHcYel0tIfP-ltE8ZrpU=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2241804054',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<h3>Draper and Fritz Call Out Brutal Tour Schedule<\/h3>\n<p>Rune\u2019s injury has reignited discussion around the grueling ATP calendar. Jack Draper, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2025\/09\/08\/jack-draper-to-miss-the-rest-of-2025\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">who himself ended his season early<\/a> after the US Open due to physical struggles, spoke <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/jackdraper0\/status\/1979628646823342116\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">candidly on social media<\/a> about the toll the tour takes on players\u2019 bodies.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cInjuries are going to happen\u2026 we are pushing our bodies to do things they aren\u2019t supposed to in elite sport. We have so many incredible younger guys on the tour right now and I\u2019m proud to be a part of that, however, the tour and the calendar have to adapt if any of us are gonna achieve some sort of longevity\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Taylor_Fritz97\/status\/1979644941438759053\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">World No. 4 Taylor Fritz echoed Draper\u2019s frustration<\/a>, responding:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFacts, also seeing more injuries and burnout now than ever before because balls, courts, conditions have slowed down a lot making the weekly grind even more physically demanding and tough on the body.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This isn\u2019t the first time players have voiced concern over the punishing 11-month season. Earlier this month, Carlos Alcaraz, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2025\/09\/30\/alcaraz-withdraws-shanghai-masters\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">who withdrew from Shanghai<\/a> after spraining his ankle in Tokyo, urged officials to consider reforms.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think that the schedule is really tight. They have to do something with the schedule. There are too many mandatory tournaments, too many in a row. To be honest, I have to consider in the future if I have to skip some mandatory tournaments just to maintain my physical condition and good shape.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"KYxqnWoXQXdXF6q6s4mBZg\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/2236595338\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'KYxqnWoXQXdXF6q6s4mBZg',sig:'d41LbdG8HDhwDU4xEgaYfW6A2i7ND7bJ72xecq_OX9s=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2236595338',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<h3>The Breaking Point of a Packed Season<\/h3>\n<p>As the season nears its end, Rune\u2019s setback serves as another stark reminder of the physical demands facing modern players \u2014 and the growing call for change from within the locker room.<\/p>\n<p>With advancements in technology and sports science, one might expect careers and player longevity to improve, as showcased by the Big Three. But with the tour continuing to expand, adding mandatory events, stretching <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2025\/08\/23\/novak-djokovic-calls-out-masters-expansion\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Masters tournaments to two weeks<\/a>, and packing the calendar across nearly 11 months, players\u2019 bodies may soon reach a tipping point where physical strain outweighs scientific progress.<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, as seen with Holger Rune\u2019s Achilles heartbreak in Stockholm, that breaking point may have already begun \u2014 and unless something changes, more players could soon pay the price.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane &#8211; USA TODAY Sports<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A dark cloud hangs over the ATP Tour after Holger Rune suffered a devastating injury during his semifinal match in Stockholm. The Dane, who looked poised to reach his first final since April, collapsed mid-point against Ugo Humbert while leading by a set and tied at 2\u20132 in the second. The 22-year-old felt a pop [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5608,"featured_media":84187,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9,3],"tags":[3951,259,5729,7605,11131,347],"class_list":["post-92483","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-atp","tag-atp-stockholm","tag-atp-tour","tag-carlos-alcaraz","tag-holger-rune","tag-jack-draper","tag-taylor-fritz"],"modified_by":"Shane Black","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92483","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5608"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=92483"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92483\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":92509,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92483\/revisions\/92509"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/84187"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=92483"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=92483"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=92483"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}