Marcos Baghdatis voices his displeasure over long matches - "If I had the keys to everything, I wouldn't play a third or fifth set"

There has been a debate over whether tennis matches should be shortened for the viewers pleasure, with retired tennis star Marcos Baghdatis recently chiming in on the topic.

The Cypriot star was a popular figure on the ATP Tour in the mid-2000's, reaching a career-high ranking of World No.8. Furthermore, Baghdatis reached the 2006 Wimbledon semifinals and finished runner-up at the 2006 Australian Open, losing to Swiss legend Roger Federer.

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Tiebreaks in lieu of a third set could keep more fans engaged, says Baghdatis

With several matches extending beyond three hours, especially at Grand Slam events where players compete in a best of five sets series, Baghdatis believes the governing bodies should implement a new rule to keep fan interest.

"In my opinion, and I say this honestly, if I had the keys to everything (which I don't!), I wouldn't play a third or fifth set, but if there was a tiebreak before 10 minutes, I would have adrenaline, excitement," said Baghdatis. "I tell you this as a fan now. I would still be just as excited, and in a Grand Slam, it would be the same.
"I say this because I watched a match on TV last year between Carlos Alcaraz and Tommy Paul in Cincinnati. Alcaraz won 7–6, then the second set 5–5, and the match was incredible. Tommy Paul won 7–6. One set all. I turned off the TV afterward."

The Grand Slams have taken steps to prevent a match from going on for too long, following the multi-day spectacle at Wimbledon between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut. Although each Major tournament now has tiebreak rules employed at the end of a five set match, there has been no talk of shortening Grand Slam matches to three sets on the ATP Tour.

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