Players say U.S. Open won't be the same without fans

Danny Zausner should be hosting 800,000 fans over the two-week run of the U.S. Open at the Billie Jean National Tennis Center when it gets underway on Monday.

Instead, the CEO of the Flushing Meadows complex is doing something completely different, having to deal with a COVID-19 impacted sport, a COVID-19 impacted society.

“I’ve described it as like a movie set, that the players are playing for the sole ability of being able to broadcast it,” Zausner said.  “We have a 42-acre site that was built to host 800,000-plus people, instead it’s here to cater to the needs of 350 plus players.”

Finally, tennis is on the go after near six months off, but doing so in the land of “no”: no spectators, no qualifying tournament, no junior tournament, no towel caddies (players have to handle their own).

And especially, no electricity, no buzz, no vibe, no atmosphere.

No longer can players expect the crowd to lift them, as only the New York fans can do. The night matches on Ashe Stadium, often the grandest of stages in the tennis world with a cocktail-infused crowd injecting energy into underdogs and favorites alike, will instead be played in front of players and coaches occupying the suites and a smattering of media in the 23,771-seat arena.

For Chris Evert, the 18-time Grand Slam champion and ESPN commentator, a big challenge facing players will be generating their own energy in the absence of the impassioned fans that have always had their backs.

“It’s got to be a huge adjustment not to be playing in front of crowds. Especially New York City crowds,” Evert said. “I remember the U.S. Open at the end of the year, we were all getting tired. As an American the crowd had really livened us up and rejuvenated us, and we didn’t want to let them down as Americans. So we got that extra energy from them.  

“So many times the crowds have pulled players out of holes, encouraged players not to quit mentally, given them all they had. The players wanted to give their passion return.”  

Former tour player and ESPN commentator  Mary Joe Fernandez has been on the ground at the tennis center for the Western & Southern, feeling the distinct lack of vibe.  

“There is no atmosphere. Players have to find that energy from within,” Fernandez said. “The pressure, the tension moments, it’s all on them.”  

Players have experienced the bleak environment this week during the Western & Southern Open, a tournament owned by the USTA that is played in Cincinnati but moved to New York to precede the U.S. Open and create the Double in the Bubble, where players could enter the strict COVID protocols and remain in them for more than three weeks.   

 “It's a ghost town, you know,” Novak Djokovic said. “Not many people around. We're not used to seeing it that way. I mean, U.S. Open is arguably the tournament that has the best energy.  You know, the people just get involved so much.  It's going to be missed.  It's missed already, for sure.”

“There isn't really an atmosphere, to be honest with you,” Andy Murray said.   “I know it's a bit of a cliché, but you need to kind of create your own atmosphere a bit on the court.  It's just not quite the same . . . In difficult moments or whatever, like a crowd being there sort of maybe helps you focus a little bit more and sometimes gives you that little bit extra boost in terms of your energy or whatever, your concentration, and that's not there.”

Also not here are the Open’s defending champions, Rafael Nadal and Bianca Andreescu, electing not to travel to New York during the pandemic.  The women’s draw was particularly hard hit by opt-outs. World No. 1 Ash Barty and No. 2 Simona Halep aren’t here along with three other players ranked in the top 10.  

In the men’s draw, Roger Federer pulled out early in the summer to recover from knee surgery. Three other name players, 2016 Open winner Stan Wawrinka, Gael Monfils and Kei Nishikori, have opted out.   

The people count will be down drastically in all aspects of the Open.  

“We would traditionally, to run this event, issue more than 27,000 credentials,”  Zausner said.  “This year it looks like 4,000. We hire and train more than 7,000 people, food service, security and the like. That will be about 1,500.”    

Zausner’s wife, Susan Marenoff-Zausner, is president of the Intrepid Museum in Manhattan and knows what it’s like to run a public enterprise when the public is highly restricted during the pandemic.  

“She always said they built the museum up to be hands-on experience,”  Zausner said. “Now they have to reopen and do a complete 180 and make it a 100%  hands-off experience. It’s the same thing here.”   

Which doesn’t sit well with world No. 1 Djokovic, who is still doing his bows to the empty stands after his match victories despite no one being there.    

“We can't sit here and pretend like we are OK, even without crowd,” Djokovic said. “We have to accept it, but, I mean, I personally definitely hope that this is a temporary thing.”