Neutral Omes:
On day 10 of the US Open, Rafael Nadal and the two Andys (Murray and Roddick) were the big names to start off rain-delayed play on Ashe. Seven minutes in and the rain returned. The players had to go off - but not without getting visibly irate about their having to go on court in the first place in the misty and damp conditions. Rafa was supposedly heard saying to tournament referee Brian Early: "It's the same old story, all you think about is money." And so it began.
Rafa went off to complain to Early further behind closed doors, with Roddick and Murray close by. A little later all three players were interviewed by Pam Shriver on ESPN:
Rafa went off to complain to Early further behind closed doors, with Roddick and Murray close by. A little later all three players were interviewed by Pam Shriver on ESPN:
“Everyone’s relaxed about it now, but when we went out on court, it was still wet, and the balls too. It doesn’t make sense to get out there for seven or eight minutes and I don’t think that will happen again. I knew that Rafa was going to see [Brian Earley]. I spoke to David Ferrer, and he was saying: ‘It was still raining when we went on there.’ The lines are slippy and very dangerous. I said I will go in and mention it as well, then Andy [Roddick] came.”- Murray“They need to put tennis on television, I understand the business side of it, but they need to make sure the players are safe. If I were by myself I’d feel uncomfortable going in there, as an American. We said if conditions are similar to that again, it might be uncomfortable. To Brian Earley’s credit, he listened to what we had to say. He was very nice in the conversation.” - Roddick“It was a tough day. We don’t feel protected here. The tournament grand slams, they are [getting] a lot of money and they are working for that, but not [for] us.“The rain really never stopped. The court was dry for 10 minutes and they know we have to go out there. The health of the players is important. This is part of the show – and we don’t feel protected. We are here working hard and we want to feel good when were playing a tournament.“Things happened today and at [other] slams and for sure we cannot accept these things. We have to be together and not accept situations. We have to fight to change that, so we don’t go on court when it’s raining. If I have to, I go on court, but it’s not fair.” - Nadal
