Former Wimbledon champion Michael Stich tells the BBC that the current top players should stop complaining so much about the calendar. "I don't think it's a big issue," said the German, who won Wimbledon in 1991 said. "I think the players forget that all the tournaments out there provide them with jobs. They are not playing more than 10 or 15 years ago. It's just like they are running after exhibitions, they are trying to make more money and don't even fulfill their commitments to the smaller tournaments some times They have a shorter season than we used to have. I played singles and doubles and you look at guys like Stefan Edberg they played singles and doubles at Grand Slams and they never complained, they loved it, it was their job."
Andy Murray indicted last weekend that the players might consider striking if their demands are not met. "Murray doesn't even play four rounds of Davis Cup throughout the year," said Stich, who is the tournament director in Hamburg. "It's not down to the tournaments and the ATP it's down to the players themselves. Perhaps they need to look out for their bodies and pick their tournaments better? They seem to want to play less but have more prize money and have more influence on the schedule. It's not a dream world out there it's a job and if you take that on you have to deal with the situations you find. They should never forget that it's a partnership. If they go on strike they should think what about if the tournaments went on strike because then they wouldn't have a job, no income and no career. They should get into discussions that are reasonable, which is happening, but to go on strike is not a good solution."
While the players have complained about the length of the schedule, four of the top Americans will be playing exhibitions in the coming days. Bob and Mike Bryan and Sam Querrey are playing a weekend long exhibition in Northern California, while the Bryans, Andy Roddick and Mardy Fish are playing an exhibition on Monday in Mobile, Alabama.