Tennis: Fed fumes after walkovers

Roger Federer, on his way to a walkover win yesterday, wants a change of rules at Wimbledon. Photo / AP

Roger Federer has urged Wimbledon to reconsider its rules, after a pair of retirements left the Centre Court crowd feeling short-changed.

The schedule for the second day of the London grand slam tennis tournament had looked so promising on paper, as Novak Djokovic and Federer - two men who have won 10 Wimbledon titles between them - appeared back-to-back.

But Djokovic spent only 40 minutes on court before his opponent, Martin Klizan, gave up because of the same calf injury that had forced him to abandon his previous tournament in Antalya, Turkey, last week.

Then, to a chorus of groans from fans who had paid 55 ($98) per ticket, something similar happened to Alexandr Dolgopolov, the Ukrainian who was facing Federer in the day's headline act. This time the match lasted 43 minutes. The scores in the two abortive contests were almost identical: Djokovic led 6-3 2-0 while Federer held a 6-3 3-0 advantage.

In his post-match press conference, Federer was quick to point out the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) - which runs the men's events outside the grand slams - is trialling a new rule this season to discourage half-fit players from beginning the tournament.

"The ATP has adjusted its rule," Federer said. "Maybe the grand slams should adopt some of that. Maybe they should have a look at what they could do for the players to make it just a little bit easier.

"I feel for the crowd," Federer added. "They're there to watch good tennis, proper tennis. When I walked up, the chairman [Philip Brook] said, 'You guys should go and play for another set and a half'. I said, 'Yeah, let me go try to find Novak'. [But] it's unfortunate that it happened like this."

The prize money for first-round losers at Wimbledon is 35,000 ($62,000), a significant sum for all but the very elite. In order to collect the cheque, though, you have to begin your match.

The ATP's new rule allows a player to collect his prize money if he withdraws shortly before the event begins, thus allowing another player - a lucky loser from the qualifying event - to take his place. So far in 2017, the tour has seen more withdrawals (which happen before the match) and fewer retirements (which happen during the match).

"A player should not go on court if he knows he should not finish," Federer said. "The question is, did they truly believe they were going to finish? If they did, I think it's okay that they walk on court. Otherwise, I feel they should give up the spot."

Federer's victory means the Swiss has now moved ahead of Jimmy Connors with his 85th match win at Wimbledon - the most of the open era.

Earlier, Djokovic expressed his disappointment at having his opponent retire.

"It was great to be back on Centre Court. It's the cradle of the tennis history and it's a special feeling to walk on. It brings back many memories. It's nice to be back but you never like to end a match this way," Djokovic said. "He [Klizan] had issues walking on to court. I tried to focus on my game plan, I was serving well and when it mattered I made a break. But you could see he wasn't moving. I'm sure he didn't want to finish this way.

"It's Wimbledon and it's a big tournament. I wish him all the best."

Last year's finalist Milos Raonic joined Federer and Djokovic in the second round.

The Canadian sixth seed moved past big-hitting German Jan-Lennard Struff 7-6(5) 6-2 7-6(4).

Also through is last week's Eastbourne finalist Gael Monfils, the 15th-seeded Frenchman advancing in straight sets over German qualifier Daniel Brands 6-3 7-5 6-4.

However, his countryman Richard Gasquet was sent packing in a first-round upset to Spaniard David Ferrer. The 35-year-old Ferrer beat 22nd seed Gasquet 6-3 6-4 5-7 6-2.