Taylor Fritz Claps Back After Tennis Exhibition Move Involving Zverev and Other ATP Stars Sparks Huge Outrage

Taylor Fritz’s run at the Australian Open 2025 came to an abrupt end in the third round where 38-year-old Gael Monfils outlived the American in a four-set clash, advancing to the fourth round with a 3-6, 7-5, 7-6, 6-4 victory. That was on the court. Off the court, however, a scheduling controversy is looming as Reports have surfaced that Paul, Zverev, and Taylor Fritz were set to appear in both the Mexican Open and the MGM Rewards Slam exhibition – two events with overlapping dates. Now Fritz has addressed the criticism head-on, responding to tennis insider Jose Morgado’s pointed remarks.

Morgado, who has over 220k followers on X ignited the discourse and labeled the overlap “terrible” for the sport. “A terrible look, really,” Morgado posted an X quoting another post that shared two pictures, involving Alexander Zverev, Taylor Fritz, and Tommy Paul.

Responding to criticism over the perceived scheduling conflict, Fritz clarified the situation, saying, “Just to clarify, the women’s match is on the 1st, and all the men’s matches are on the 2nd. I wouldn’t sign up for an event that coincides with the finals of a potential tour event before the tournament EVEN starts 1.) that would be just setting yourself up for failure.“

Continuing further, he added, “I’m pretty sure there are rules against doing that in the first place. That being said I’m pretty disappointed that people can’t figure that out for themselves and just assume the worst that we are all double booking an exo during the finals of an important event as if we aren’t planning on doing well at the tournament or something ridiculous along those lines.”

The MGM Rewards Slam, taking place at the Michelob ULTRA Arena at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas, will feature ATP players Alexander Zverev, Taylor Fritz, and Tommy Paul, along with WTA standouts Aryna Sabalenka and Naomi Osaka. On the same weekend, the Mexican Open will be held in Acapulco and will kick off its main draw on March 1, with Zverev, Paul, and Fritz all potential finalists in the ATP event—an issue exacerbated by the fact that all three have already been advertised as part of the Las Vegas lineup.

Fritz earlier too voiced his opinion on exhibition matches when voices like Alexander Zverev, Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, and Iga Swiatek joined a growing call for scheduling reforms. One argument that drew sharp scrutiny was: how could players demand a shorter season while participating in exhibition matches? John Milman, an Australian player, fueled the discussion in September, calling the notion of a condensed calendar a “hard sell” when they frequently committed to multiple exhibition events.

Fritz, however, didn’t agree with the notion. “I agree that it’s tough for the tour to shorten the schedule when players will just play Exos to fill the time, and I’ve seen a lot of people criticizing some of the players asking for a shorter season because they go and play Exos,” the American stated.

“I don’t understand that part of the argument, because playing an exo vs a tour event aren’t comparable to each other in terms of burnout — physically and especially mentally. A tour event can be 5+ days of playing all out and mentally being dialed in on all things on and off court, VS an exo you show up, have some fun, and entertain for a match or two. You don’t have to all-out push your body and there is absolutely 0 mental fatigue or stress,” Fritz further added

While that may be it, related to Taylor Fritz’s opinion on scheduling, what about his recent form? How has the US Open finalist fared in the ongoing season so far?

Taylor Fritz’s has been off to a modest start in 2025

The 2024 season was quite remarkable for Taylor Fritz. He reached his first Australian Open quarterfinals with victory over the seventh-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas and defended his Delray Beach title against good friend Tommy Paul.

The season also included wins in his first clay court final in Munich, a career 250th win, and a first Grand Slam semifinal appearance at the US Open, where he became the first American since Andre Agassi to reach the fourth round of all four Slams in a single season. Fritz finished the year in the fourth position in the world rankings, a career-high for him, despite losing both the US Open and ATP Finals final to Jannik Sinner.

But 2025 has not started that well for Fritz with his AO journey coming to a halt sooner than expected. He eased past compatriot Jenson Brooks, winning by 6-2, 6-0, 6-3 and showing early dominance. The American carried that momentum into the second round, defeating Chile’s Cristian Garín 6-2, 6-1, 6-0 But in the third round, against Gaël Monfils, Fritz’s run ended in a tight defeat.

But the 2024 Olympic Bronze medalist has a plethora of tournaments to bounce back. And as far as his search for the first Grand Slam title is concerned, he can have three more cracks at that, this season. He will look to regain his form in the Dallas Open, where he plays next, starting on February 3.