02.06.2013 10:50:38 | "People were pulling my leg today saying why should I be getting nervous when it starts raining, because they know that I am well aware that everything turns out to be fine. They told me - this is your fourteenth time, you know we can make everything on time no problem." This was a statement Petra Langrova, the UniCredit Czech Open tournament director made last year and really, everything went very well in the end. It will sure be the case also this year. "Our courts are in supreme condition, they can bear some rain; and even if it rains a lot, then we will play on the centre court."
The jubilee twentieth year of the UniCredit Czech Open was drawn late night Saturday and the tournament starts with qualification today. Although today's weather forecast is not very optimistic, according to the words of the tournament director, the AGROFERT Arena center court offers a possibility to play until late at night with artificial lighting. Should the situation of 2010 repeat when the matches on center court finished shortly before midnight? Three years ago, the ball boys and girls were long asleep in their beds, therefore the referees covered up for them and people such as Denisa Kaprálová, Kateřina Dymanusová či JUDr. Anna Michalcová passed the balls to players. Jaroslav Pospíšil from Prostějov finished his match around 10:30 p.m. then when he beat the eight-seeded Michael Russell in the first round in three sets 6:7, 6:1 and 6:2. The last match of the first round singles between the Spanish Alcaido and the Argentinian Brzezicki was finished shortly before midnight on the Agrofert Arena center court in 2010. Let's hope we will not need any of such extensions on the center court this year...
