ROME -- The biggest loser at the Rome Masters on Saturday were the fans.
One after the other, Andy Roddick and Radek Stepanek retired shortly after their semifinal matches began.
Roddick pulled out with a back problem after falling behind 3-0 in the first set against Stanislas Wawrinka. Stepanek stopped while trailing Novak Djokovic 6-0, 1-0 after appearing affected by the heat.
The total elapsed time for the two matches was a wimpy 49 minutes.
"You don't want to have these kind of situations at big events," said Djokovic, who joined the chorus of players complaining that the schedule is too tough.
"The players are not getting injured for nothing, you know. There is a big reason why they're having these difficulties. I understand that because I was in that situation many times."
At the Monte Carlo Masters last month, Djokovic retired from his semifinal match against top-ranked Roger Federer with a sore throat.
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| Andy Roddick retires in Rome, and his status for Hamburg is in doubt. (Getty Images) |
"I started feeling bad for the first time after practice this morning, and then I ate lunch and was feeling a little better," Stepanek said. "Once the match started, however, I started feeling worse and worse. I was dizzy and weak and couldn't play."
Roddick pulled up awkwardly after Wawrinka hit a forehand winner in the third game, then asked for a trainer on the changeover. He came back out and double-faulted, then quit.
"I felt a little something last night in my back when I was getting treatment. Then, one wrong movement and I had a complete spasm," Roddick said. "I can't really move my left arm right now. You can't really play around that."
Injuries have been a common theme all week at the Foro Italico.
Three-time defending champion Rafael Nadal suffered from a blister on his right foot in a second-round loss to Juan Carlos Ferrero.
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