09/06/26 02:04:00
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09/06 14:02 CDT Empty seats, tired stars: The US Open's post-2 a.m. finishes
spark a pushback
Empty seats, tired stars: The US Open's post-2 a.m. finishes spark a pushback
By BRIAN MAHONEY and STEPHEN WHYNO
AP Sports Writers
NEW YORK (AP) --- Alexander Zverev wasn't in the mood for much conversation.
With empty seats everywhere after he finished his U.S. Open first-round match
in the early morning hours, he took two questions from reporters on the court
and quickly wrapped it up.
"I think everybody's tired," he said. "Everybody wants to go to sleep."
The city that never sleeps is going a little overboard this year.
Players have long loved the electricity of night matches at the U.S. Open,
where tennis under the lights at Arthur Ashe Stadium is a hallmark of the
American Grand Slam tournament, with fans staying late and bringing plenty of
energy. But with the tournament this year already setting a record with three
post-2 a.m. finishes over the first six days, plus two more going past 1 a.m.,
concerns are bubbling up about how much after midnight is too much on such a
big stage.
"I know they're dealing with a lot of different aspects as far as broadcast and
TV and making sure certain matches get done and are starting at a certain time
for those reasons," third-ranked women's player Jessica Pegula said. "But you
have to wonder if it's really the right thing for players to be finishing at 2
a.m., especially when it's not --- like, I'm not watching on TV. I'm sleeping.
Some people stay, but there is a lot of people that need to go home."
Wimbledon instituted an 11 p.m. curfew. The French Open schedules just one
match a night. The U.S. Open is famous for going late, though this time maybe
to an extreme.
On opening night, Venus Williams was subjected to the latest start in U.S. Open
history at 12:13 a.m., after it took 4 hours, 36 minutes for Novak Djokovic to
get knocked out in the first round.
Much of the crowd stuck around to see what could wind up being the
46-year-old's final Grand Slam singles match, a loss to Sofia Kenin, but the
timing itself was a challenge.
"It's not ideal," Williams said. "I would have preferred something else,
definitely. It wasn't great for either of us, so I think we both tried our
best. I just don't know any other sport where you have to start that late. I
definitely think there's room for improvement there."
Zverev's first two matches ended at 1:55 and 2:15 a.m., making him the first
top-seeded man to play back-to-back five-set matches to start a major in the
Open era, which dates to 1968. Ben Shelton's second-rounder that started Friday
night went until 2:07 a.m. Saturday thanks to the Williams sisters' doubles
match lasting more than three hours.
Four of the latest 17 finishes in tournament history have occurred this year.
The record is still 2:50 a.m. from when Carlos Alcaraz beat Jannik Sinner in
the quarterfinals in 2022 on the way to his first U.S. Open title.
"Not easy," Shelton said after defeating Denis Shapovalov in 3 hours, 22
minutes. "My first time experiencing playing this late."
Shelton figured the earliest he'd get to sleep was 5 a.m.
Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka, who two years ago played what is now the
fourth-latest women's match, is not a fan of playing after midnight and the
potentially lingering effects.
"When you finish late, the next day shifts a lot," Sabalenka said. "Like, you
still need to get your hours of sleep, so you start later. You just can really
mess up your schedule."
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