After their fourth-round exits Tuesday, both Radwanska and Halep complained firmly about tournament organizers’ decision to make them play through drizzles – or worse – that made courts slippery and clay-caked tennis balls heavy. But the winners at the French Open on Tuesday liked it a lot better than the losers.
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They were the only two matches completed yesterday after the tournament had suffered its first complete washout in 16 years on Monday.
On the same day that 2014 finalist Simona Halep bemoaned the conditions after going out to Sam Stosur, the Pole said it was unacceptable that she and her fellow competitors had been asked to play in the Parisian rain on such a big stage.
She shared Radwanska’s feelings that organisers “don’t care” about the players and are favouring the interests of the tournament instead.
Spanish veteran David Ferrer blasted the French Open as a “rip-off” on Wednesday as the controversy over forcing players to compete in the pouring rain rumbled on.
Pironkova will now face Stosur in the quaterfinals, with the victor to take on either No. 4 Garbiñe Muguruza or No. 108 Shelby Rogers, both of whom won matches Sunday before play was stopped.
Continuing showers Tuesday pushed back the start of play, but the rain became lighter, the tarps came off and there was action all around the grounds. Stosur dominated from the start on Tuesday.
“The rain and all that, it is what it is”, Stosur said. “I was able to get on a bit of a roll from that point on”. David Goffin and Ernests Gulbis took matters into their own hands and refused to continue their match, while Dominic Thiem also walked off during his contest with Marcel Granollers.
Radwanska and Halep’s opponents had to play on the same conditions that theydid.
“Everyone was in the same situation, and who was stronger won today”, Halep said.
Samantha Stosur reaches a Grand Slam semi-final for the first time since 2012 courtesy of a straight-sets victory over Tsvetana Pironkova at the French Open.
Radwanska must have thought she was almost there on Sunday when she left the court leading world number 102 Pironkova 6-2 3-0.
The first rain stoppage in the match was late on Sunday with Halep leading 5-3, the Romanian’s steady pummelling of Stosur’s weaker backhand side having paid off in the seventh game when she took the Australian’s serve on her third break point. She said the players were told to play and so they did.
Serena Williams, the top seed for the women, is the heavy favorite to win her bracket and earn her 22nd Grand Slam title.
And it was built on a blistering start on Tuesday, when Stosur took out her frustrations of a two-day rain delay on the world number six.
The 27-year-old, who called on the trainer to get treatment on her right hand midway through the decider, eventually halted Pironkova’s run by breaking the Bulgarian in the fifth game. “It was OK. We could have played, and so we did”.
Venus Williams against Timea Bacsinszky, the tie between Carla Suarez Navarro and Yulia Putintseva and the clash featuring Kiki Bertens against Madison Keys were also behind schedule.
Rain has eliminated yet another day at the French Open, though this time a couple big matches were able to finish up, to the chagrin of the losers.
“I know what it feels like out there and I know it was raining for the first time we went out today, but the court was okay for the most part”.
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Halep also queried the wisdom of scheduling doubles matches before theirs after the tie was originally moved to Court One on Sunday.
