PARIS (AP) – The French Open is not the only sporting event in Europe that has attracted attention from tennis players. The Champions League Finals determine the best football clubs on the continent. One of the two teams involved on Saturday night is Paris Saint-Germain.
Among those cheering for PSG against Italian Inter Milan, Count Novak Djokovic hoped it could be tuned to the TV to watch the big clashes taking place in Munich, Germany. So Djokovic knew his preferences to those responsible for arranging the program at the Clay Court Grand Slam tournament. He won three times. This is a common practice, especially among sports elites.
They often ask to be scheduled at a certain time. Or to avoid certain times.
“If I’m not having an evening session (inside) I’ll definitely see it. Yeah, that’s fine,” Djokovic said with a big smile. “Reference: Roland Garos’ schedule.”
Tips, hints. Except that his pleas have not been heeded, when Saturday’s play order was released on Friday, the third round match against 24-time major champion Djokovic Philip Mithorick was chosen under court lighting, starting at 8:15pm, 45 minutes before Inter Milan vs PSG begins, and at 8:15pm local time.
Others who begged for competition at that time got their wish. One is Arthur Phil, the 14th seeded Frenchman who grew up near Paris and is a big PSG fan, No. After appearing in an afternoon match against Andrey Rublev of 17, he was pulled out of the tournament due to a stress fracture in his back.
“We get a lot of requests from players,” tournament director Amélie Mauresmo said every day. “There are no fixed rules. We try to deal with everyone as much as possible. It includes requests from players, broadcasters and audiences. …It’s a real puzzle, I won’t lie.”
Coco Gauff said she doesn’t frequently ask for a specific time slot, but when she does, it’s usually related to competing in singles and doubles on the same day (the Americans won the French Open Doubles title last year, but this time they’re not playing doubles).
The 2023 US Open Champion, currently number two in singles, has noticed that the event tends to listen to elite players more than others.
“If you rank a little higher, they’ll certainly hear more of your opinions,” Gauff said. “To be honest, I think that’s obvious. If it goes well on the tour, if you win so many tournaments, you should get a little more priority in that.”
Even the best and best things don’t always succeed in this kind of thing.
The Madison Keys, who was the runner-up in the US Open in 2017 and won the Australian Open in January, knows what it’s like to be ignored.
“Sometimes the request is (in), and they write it down and say, ‘OK,'” Keys said.
“I really think it’s just a matter of what the tournament wants, what TV wants, that’s what it wants,” she added. “Sometimes you get what you want.
Ask Djokovic.
“Even if they schedule me, I have to accept it,” he said earlier this season. “I think I’ve earned the right to … (communication) in tournament management, where I can express what I want depending on the person and on a particular day.”
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Associated Press Writer Tom Nuvier contributed to the report.
