The Washington Open finals were brought to a halt on Sunday afternoon because of rain and lightning in the American capital. It comes ahead of this month’s US Open in New York, with players across the sport gearing up for the final Grand Slam of the year.
The organisers of the Washington Open were forced to release an emergency statement after heavy rain brought a halt to the Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool vs Austin Krajicek and Nikola Mektic encounter. The match was in the second set when the heavens opened, with British duo Cash and Glasspool having taken a first-set lead.
Play had originally got back underway, but the deluge and lightning continued, meaning the doubles final was once again delayed. Tournament organisers confirmed the play wouldn’t restart before 7pm UK time, which was 2pm in Washington.
It came after initial revisions had already been made to the schedule to try and avoid any costly rain delays. An initial statement released on Sunday morning read: “The Mubadala DC Open has announced a revision to Sunday’s order of play due to forecasted weather conditions.
“The men’s singles final will now take place not before 2:30 p.m. on Stadium. The women’s singles final will begin at 12 p.m. In the men’s singles, third seed Taylor Fritz will play Rafael Jodar.
“The men’s doubles final will begin at 11 a.m. on John Harris. Third seeds Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool will take on Austin Krajicek and Nikola Mektic.”
They were then forced to release an additional statement telling players and fans to ‘seek shelter immediately’ due to lightning strikes in the area.
The statement read: “Play will not resume before 2:00pm EST due to rain and lightning. Everyone on site should seek shelter immediately.”
It posed problems for Jodar in particular, who didn’t finish his semi-final until 11:15pm local time on Saturday night. By shifting the final forward, it’s reduced his recovery time, while Fritz enters the showpiece event on the back of a longer recovery.
If he were to battle through the adversity, it would represent the second ATP title for the Spaniard, having triumphed in the Grand Prix Hassan II earlier this year. The ATP 250 event was his first-ever professional title, with Jodar tipped for a long and successful career in the sport.
Following his win over Alejandro Tabilo, the 19-year-old remarked: “It is great. I am doing good things with my team and especially my dad. He’s always there with me, so I really appreciate it… It means a lot to be in the final. But I have to keep pushing because there is another tough match tomorrow when I will face Fritz in the final.”