By Pritha Sarkar
NEW YORK, Sept 2 - Spaniard Tommy Robredo accused
Novak Djokovic of exaggerating the seriousness of his injuries
to get some extra rest during their draining five-set tussle in
the fourth round of the U.S. Open on Tuesday.
Djokovic took an injury time midway through the second set
to get a painful hip treated, complained of an upset stomach
and also appeared to be hobbling around court after rolling his
ankle.
Robredo, who lost 4-6 6-2 6-3 5-7 6-3, did not seem too
sympathetic.
"I have pain, as well. I was running like hell and my feet
were burning but I say nothing," said Robredo, who tumbled to
the ground in the fifth set while lunging after a Djokovic
shot.
"I think that if you're not fit enough, then don't play.
"But after every time he was asking for a trainer, he was
running like hell and he was making the shot. But he does what
he does a lot of times."
Robredo felt Djokovic was taking advantage of rules that
allowed players to receive multiple medical breaks provided it
was a new problem that needed to be treated by the trainer.
It is not the first time that Djokovic has been accused of
stretching the rules.
In 2006 and 2007, he was criticised by many opponents,
including Roger Federer during a Davis Cup rubber, for seeking
medical times outs at critical junctures in a match.
"So I think we should take care a lot more of these things,
because one thing is that if you fell down like I did, I can
have blood and it's normal that trainer gets in because there's
blood or whatever," said Robredo.
"But for having pain, I had pain, as well, all over my body
because I think I run a lot more than him and I said nothing.
"So did I trust (believe) him? No. I think he took his
time because he did it because he was a little bit more tired
and that's a part of the game. It helped him a lot."
Djokovic's next opponent, Andy Roddick, was already making
a mental note of the medical time outs the Serbian can request
when they meet in the quarter-finals on Thursday.
"A back and a hip? And a cramp?... bird flu... anthrax...
SARS... common cough and cold," Roddick listed for reporters.
"If its there, it's there, there's just a lot. He's either
quick to call a trainer or he's the most courageous guy of all
time. It's up to you guys to decide."
(Editing by Larry Fine)