The rain in Washington caused some disorder in the order of play, with some tennis players doubling the session in the Citi Open. It is the case of Andrey Rublevcurrent number 8 in the ATP ranking, who beat Maxime Cressy first, then defeat JJ Wolf, paths victories in two sets. The Russian tennis player explained at a press conference how the factors that can condition tennis affect the court, with weather conditions as one of them.
“It’s part of the sport”
“Exactly the same thing happened to me here in 2018 and again today. Depends on the games you have. In my case, I’m really lucky that I didn’t spend a lot of time on the court compared to Nishioka, for example, who spent 3 hours and 30 minutes in a single match. I’d rather play two matches than play one like his.
It is part of the sport. I think that’s the fun part, you don’t know what to expect. Suddenly, you have two games in one day. You have to play at a certain time, but it gets delayed and delayed and you have to start really late. You can’t adapt, I think. It is as it is.
After the first game I went to the shower, to stretch with the physio and then I ate. I didn’t eat something healthy and then I fell asleep. When I woke up it was raining. I had a coffee and waited for the match”.
Victory against Wolf
“Of course, I am happy to be in the semifinals in Washington for the second time. I want to give my best tomorrow to go further. The challenge was the temperature. At first it was too hot. At night it was fine. If the center court lights were stronger it would be much better. Other than that, it plays well at night.
Cressy’s service is amazing. She has two first serves, something she hadn’t seen in my life. JJ plays trades, something I had to adjust to in the first game. I forgot about the feeling of playing trades.”
