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| Injuries Force Flurry of Withdrawals at Wimbledon | Injuries Force Flurry of Withdrawals at Wimbledon |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Wimbledon, England — Fifteen minutes into Wednesday’s action at Wimbledon, John Isner retired from his second-round match against Adrian Mannarino of France with a knee injury. He could not have known at the time that he had started a trend. | Wimbledon, England — Fifteen minutes into Wednesday’s action at Wimbledon, John Isner retired from his second-round match against Adrian Mannarino of France with a knee injury. He could not have known at the time that he had started a trend. |
| About an hour later, Steve Darcis, who played the match of his life to defeat Rafael Nadal on Monday, withdrew because of a right shoulder injury. | About an hour later, Steve Darcis, who played the match of his life to defeat Rafael Nadal on Monday, withdrew because of a right shoulder injury. |
| Fifteen minutes after that, Victoria Azarenka, the No. 2 seed in the women’s draw, withdrew from her second-round match against Flavia Pennetta with a knee injury. | Fifteen minutes after that, Victoria Azarenka, the No. 2 seed in the women’s draw, withdrew from her second-round match against Flavia Pennetta with a knee injury. |
| By the end of the day, a knee injury had forced No. 6 seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to quit his match after three sets; Radek Stepanek had retired in the second set with a hamstring injury; and No. 10 seed Marin Cilic had withdrawn with a knee injury. Yaroslava Shvedova withdrew from her match with an arm injury. The carnage even hit the doubles tournament, as Bernard Tomic and Victor Troicki pulled out of their match in the second set because of Tomic’s hamstring injury. | By the end of the day, a knee injury had forced No. 6 seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to quit his match after three sets; Radek Stepanek had retired in the second set with a hamstring injury; and No. 10 seed Marin Cilic had withdrawn with a knee injury. Yaroslava Shvedova withdrew from her match with an arm injury. The carnage even hit the doubles tournament, as Bernard Tomic and Victor Troicki pulled out of their match in the second set because of Tomic’s hamstring injury. |
| Even those who were able to start and finish their matches were not safe. Third-seeded Maria Sharapova and ninth-seeded Caroline Wozniacki kept playing after slipping and needing medical treatment, and both lost. | Even those who were able to start and finish their matches were not safe. Third-seeded Maria Sharapova and ninth-seeded Caroline Wozniacki kept playing after slipping and needing medical treatment, and both lost. |
| “Very black day,” Cilic said. | “Very black day,” Cilic said. |
| According to the International Tennis Federation, the seven retirements and walkovers in singles were believed to be the most singles retirements and walkovers on the same day at a Grand Slam event in the open era. | According to the International Tennis Federation, the seven retirements and walkovers in singles were believed to be the most singles retirements and walkovers on the same day at a Grand Slam event in the open era. |
| All of the slipping and injuries naturally led to questions of why. The suggested culprits included the length of the season, the short time to adjust from clay to glass, the condition of the courts and even the chilly weather. | All of the slipping and injuries naturally led to questions of why. The suggested culprits included the length of the season, the short time to adjust from clay to glass, the condition of the courts and even the chilly weather. |
| Wimbledon’s courts tend to be more slippery at the beginning of the tournament before the grass around the baseline is worn down into a patch of dirt. But there have been several noticeable slips, the most graphic being when Azarenka twisted her right knee during her first-round match Monday. She lay on the court in tears for several minutes, but she continued to play on a heavily taped right knee and beat Maria Joao Koehler, 6-1, 6-2. | |
| Azarenka said a magnetic resonance imaging test Tuesday showed no tendon or ligament tears, so she tried to be optimistic about continuing to play. She described the injury as a bone bruise, and said the doctors were surprised she was able to get up after such a bad fall. | |
| “I tried to practice today a little bit to see if it was going to warm up or with treatment get better,” Azarenka said. “It just didn’t, just got worse.” | “I tried to practice today a little bit to see if it was going to warm up or with treatment get better,” Azarenka said. “It just didn’t, just got worse.” |
| Azarenka said she did not want to take her frustration out on the court conditions, but noted that they were not very good. | Azarenka said she did not want to take her frustration out on the court conditions, but noted that they were not very good. |
| “I don’t know if it’s the court, or it’s the weather,” she said. “Would be great if the club or somebody who takes care of the court just would examine or try to find an issue so that wouldn’t happen.” | “I don’t know if it’s the court, or it’s the weather,” she said. “Would be great if the club or somebody who takes care of the court just would examine or try to find an issue so that wouldn’t happen.” |
| Richard Lewis, chief executive of the All England Club, defended the court conditions. | Richard Lewis, chief executive of the All England Club, defended the court conditions. |
| “There has been a high number of withdrawals at The Championships today and we sympathise with all the players affected,” Lewis said in a statement. “The withdrawals have occurred for a variety of reasons, but there has been some suggestion that the court surface is to blame. We have no reason to think this is the case. Indeed, many players have complimented us on the very good condition of the courts. | “There has been a high number of withdrawals at The Championships today and we sympathise with all the players affected,” Lewis said in a statement. “The withdrawals have occurred for a variety of reasons, but there has been some suggestion that the court surface is to blame. We have no reason to think this is the case. Indeed, many players have complimented us on the very good condition of the courts. |
| “The court preparation has been to exactly the same meticulous standard as in previous years and it is well known that grass surfaces tend to be more lush at the start of an event. The factual evidence, which is independently checked, is that the courts are almost identical to last year, as dry and firm as they should be, and we expect them to continue to play to their usual high quality.” | “The court preparation has been to exactly the same meticulous standard as in previous years and it is well known that grass surfaces tend to be more lush at the start of an event. The factual evidence, which is independently checked, is that the courts are almost identical to last year, as dry and firm as they should be, and we expect them to continue to play to their usual high quality.” |
| Sharapova fell three times during her 6-3, 6-3 loss to the qualifier Michelle Larcher de Brito of Portugal, and she could be seen on the television broadcast calling the courts dangerous. But in her news conference later, she did not want to use that – or a strained left hip -- as an excuse. | |
| “Those are the conditions that are there for my opponent as well,” Sharapova said. “Just took a lot more falls than she did today.” | “Those are the conditions that are there for my opponent as well,” Sharapova said. “Just took a lot more falls than she did today.” |
| Wozniacki slipped during the first set of the match against the qualifier Petra Cetkovska and required treatment on her left foot. She said her movement was limited after that and she lost, 6-2, 6-2. She said she thought the grass this year was slower, not more slippery. | |
| “You always know that grass is more slippery than other surfaces,” Wozniacki said. “You’re prepared for that. But, you know, accidents happen sometimes on court.” | |
| Isner said his injury would have happened no matter what surface he was on. He hurt his knee while serving in the third point of the match. | Isner said his injury would have happened no matter what surface he was on. He hurt his knee while serving in the third point of the match. |
| “I didn’t do anything different,” Isner said. “I just go to serve and land on my left leg, like I have done 20 million times playing this game, and this is the first time I just felt this, like, sharp pain.” | “I didn’t do anything different,” Isner said. “I just go to serve and land on my left leg, like I have done 20 million times playing this game, and this is the first time I just felt this, like, sharp pain.” |
| Isner received medical attention during the changeover and tried to continue playing, but he could barely move, returning only one serve and retiring after the second game. He said he could not bend his knee or put much weight on it. | Isner received medical attention during the changeover and tried to continue playing, but he could barely move, returning only one serve and retiring after the second game. He said he could not bend his knee or put much weight on it. |
| Isner also withdrew from the Australian Open before it started with a bone bruise in his right knee. But this was a particularly disappointing turn of events for Isner, who was the highest seeded player remaining in his part of the draw after Nadal and Stanislas Wawrinka lost in the first round. | Isner also withdrew from the Australian Open before it started with a bone bruise in his right knee. But this was a particularly disappointing turn of events for Isner, who was the highest seeded player remaining in his part of the draw after Nadal and Stanislas Wawrinka lost in the first round. |
| “It’s tough to think about,” he said. " I had a good chance to go pretty far here.” | “It’s tough to think about,” he said. " I had a good chance to go pretty far here.” |
| Cilic and Tsonga said they were dealing with pre-existing injuries that had flared up in recent weeks. Tsonga sought medical treatment on the court after he and Ernests Gulbis split the first two sets, 3-6, 6-3. He retired after losing the third set, 6-3. | |
| “I know when it’s getting worse and worse like this that it’s not really good for me to play because I know I will do more damage,” Tsonga said. | “I know when it’s getting worse and worse like this that it’s not really good for me to play because I know I will do more damage,” Tsonga said. |
| He suggested the chilly weather, which is not unusual here, was bad for his joints. While he did not think a shorter season was needed, more time to rest was. | He suggested the chilly weather, which is not unusual here, was bad for his joints. While he did not think a shorter season was needed, more time to rest was. |
| “I have to play almost every week if I want to keep my ranking and have some opportunity, you know, in big tournaments,” he said. “I need to keep my ranking really high.” | “I have to play almost every week if I want to keep my ranking and have some opportunity, you know, in big tournaments,” he said. “I need to keep my ranking really high.” |
| Darcis, with many new fans earned in his win over Nadal, did not get the chance at a follow-up against Lukasz Kubot. He said he thought he hurt his right shoulder was in the middle of the first set against Nadal, when he dove in the seventh game. He said he felt fine the rest of the match, but hours later, he was in severe pain and could not sleep. | |
| With inflammation and fluid in his right shoulder, he received physical therapy and an injection Tuesday. But on Wednesday, he could not serve or hit forehands, so he decided to withdraw. | With inflammation and fluid in his right shoulder, he received physical therapy and an injection Tuesday. But on Wednesday, he could not serve or hit forehands, so he decided to withdraw. |
| “When you beat a guy like Rafa first round, you want to show more, you want to play more matches,” Darcis said. “I was playing maybe the best tennis in my life here.” | “When you beat a guy like Rafa first round, you want to show more, you want to play more matches,” Darcis said. “I was playing maybe the best tennis in my life here.” |