Novak Djokovic's 'absurd' proposed rule change slammed by tennis icon before Cincinnati Open

Twenty-four-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic has been criticised after he suggested making a huge change to tennis.

Djokovic is currently preparing for his Cincinnati Open round-of-64 clash against Argentina’s Thiago Agustin Tirante later today (August 15), with the ATP 1000 tournament being the Serbian’s first since he appeared at Wimbledon in July.

The veteran decided against playing in both the Washington Open and Canadian Open during the early part of the North American hard-court swing but is expected to participate in the final major of the season, the US Open, which gets underway on August 30, with Djokovic aiming for a 25th Grand Slam crown, having been without a title since lifting the US Open crown in 2023.

However, before the tournament, Djokovic has already got fans, pundits and current as well as former players talking after putting forward an idea which would heavily change tennis.

The 39-year-old has suggested that sets should be four games instead of the current six, as well as wanting to scrap the tie-break system.

Speaking to Nick Knows Ball, Djokovic explained: “We have to change the scoring system. Sets should no longer be played to six games, but to four. I would also scrap the advantage. And if the Grand Slam matches continued with the best-of-five-sets system, they would take only around two hours. That would be better for everyone.”

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On the ATP Tour, players must win six games by a two-game margin in order to win a set. Then, if the score is 6-6 after 12 games, then there’s usually a tie-break.

A tie-break is decided by the player who reaches seven points with a two-point lead. Most ATP Tour matches are best-of-three sets, and players must win two sets to win the match.

If a player goes 2-0 up, then they win the match. This is slightly different in Grand Slams – the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open – which are best-of-five sets, meaning players need to win three sets to win the match.

Novak Djokovic’s proposed rule change receives mixed reaction

Djokovic’s proposal has evoked a mixed reaction from the tennis community, with two-time Grand Slam winner Yevgeny Kafelnikov speaking out against the idea during an appearance on First&Red.

He said: “It’s absurd! It’s nonsense beyond belief. If this happens, I will be completely disappointed with tennis.”

Former French player Julien Benneteau also rejected Djokovic’s suggestion during an interview with L’Equipe.

Benneteau said: “I understand that it can make the opening games more important, whereas some match beginnings can be boring. But tomorrow, will we have ten-minute football matches? On the Tour de France, will we do a straight 15km climb up to Alpe d'Huez, without the preceding 150km? No, that would make no sense.

“Tennis is also the drama that leads to the end of sets. I think it's the easy way out, because sports consumption habits have changed, to want to shorten matches like that. Fifteen-minute sets, is that really what we want?”

But it appears not everyone is against the proposal, with current fifth-ranked star Ben Shelton explaining how “it could be cool”.

Speaking at the Canadian Open, the American said: “It was interesting coming from him, because he's always been the guy who's the fittest on tour, the guy that can last five hours, six hours, doesn't matter.

“But I think it would be an interesting change, for sure. I think tennis is certainly a traditional sport, and tournaments like to stick with their traditions, but I would be interested to play some matches in this format.”