Shanghai - Alexander Zverev said on Wednesday that he will not play in the new-format Davis Cup finals in November 2019 because he needs the time off, calling the scheduling "crazy".

The 21-year-old German, regarded as one of the finest prospects in tennis, said that he expects other high-ranking players to follow suit.

"Because in November I do not want to play tennis anymore," the world number five said, speaking at the Shanghai Masters after beating Georgia's hard-hitting Nikoloz Basilashvili.

"I think all the top guys will say the same thing. We have one and a half months off in our season, and that's end of November and December.

"Making a tournament end of November which is 10 days playing and competing, it's crazy.

"By the end of the year we are all tired."

The finals of the Davis Cup, the venerable men's team tennis event, will take place in Madrid in 2019 and 2020 for a week at the end of the season.

Many top players have skipped the Davis Cup in recent years to ease their schedule, and Zverev expects that trend to continue even with the new format, which was supposed to attract more of the star names.

"For us as top players, we had discussions, we had talks with the ATP how to make the season shorter, and not longer," said Zverev.

"No, it's not happening (playing in November 2019) and I guarantee you I will not be the only one."