​French Open – The Stands Martina Navratilova attends the Women Final of Roland Garros at Roland Garros on June 8, 2024 in Paris, France. Photo by Laurent Zabulon/ABACAPRESS.COM Paris France PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxFRAxESPxUKxUSAxBELxPOL Copyright: xZabulonxLaurent/ABACAx ©IMAGO/ABACAPRESSLate nights are nothing new at Flushing Meadows, but the frequency this year is becoming difficult to ignore. Alcaraz and Sinner famously played until a record 2:50 a.m. in their 2022 US Open quarterfinal, the latest finish in tournament history. But that was one extraordinary match. Through the first six night sessions this year, Arthur Ashe has already finished after 1 a.m. four times and after 2 a.m. three times. The problem is no longer one marathon match. It is becoming the schedule itself, and now former champions Martina Navratilova and Boris Becker are backing the players calling it out.“This is not sustainable,” posted the 18-time Grand Slam champion after another late finish. Boris Becker also backed this and said, “That’s simply too late to play tennis… tell me another sport like that?!?”Night 1, Aug. 30: Sofia Kenin defeated Venus Williams 6-2, 7-6(6). The match lasted 1 hour, 48 minutes and finished at 2:01 a.m.Night 2, Aug. 31: Naomi Osaka defeated Anastasia Zakharova 7-6(6), 7-6(3). The match lasted 2 hours, 2 minutes and finished at 12:26 a.m.Night 3, Sept. 1: Alexander Zverev defeated Lorenzo Sonego 6-4, 3-6, 6-7(7), 7-5, 6-4. The five-set match lasted 4 hours, 53 minutes and finished at 1:55 a.m.Night 4, Sept. 2: Carlos Alcaraz defeated Jaime Faria 4-6, 6-0, 6-3, 6-2. The match lasted 2 hours, 40 minutes and finished at 11:15 p.m.Night 5, Sept. 3: Alexander Zverev defeated Quentin Halys 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-7(3), 6-3. The match lasted 4 hours, 33 minutes and finished at 2:15 a.m.Night 6, Sept. 4: Ben Shelton defeated Denis Shapovalov 7-6(3), 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4. The match lasted 3 hours, 22 minutes and finished at 2:07 a.m.The US Open has dealt with extreme late finishes before. In 2024, Alexander Zverev and Tomas Martin Etcheverry played until 2:35 a.m., the second-latest finish in tournament history, while Zheng Qinwen and Donna Vekic finished at 2:15 a.m., setting the record for the latest women’s match at the US Open.For players, the concern now turns to recovery.The US Open schedule is becoming a talking point for all the right reasons. Subscribe for more interesting stories.Jessica Pegula questioned whether these late finishes are fair on players.“It’s tough. Almost every single night, the matches are finishing really late. I think it’s difficult, and I don’t think any of the players really like it.”Aryna Sabalenka also explained that the problem does not end when the match does.“Of course, I would prefer to finish earlier, so I can have my easy evening… When you finish late, it’s just like the whole next day shifts a lot. You still need to get hours of sleep, so you start later, and it can really mess with your sch