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"But as far as building a lengthy sabbatical into players' careers, that isn't on the radar," Agars said. The women's tour has come under the most scrutiny, with 27-year-old Henin the latest example escort in chengdu a top player who retired in her prime but perhaps only needed an extended break. Even so, Sony Ericsson WTA Tour CEO Stacey Allaster says nothing along the lines escort a sabbatical is under consideration. "I never want to say never, but that's an extreme situation, one from which we've never engaged with," Allaster told a group escort reporters earlier this month at the U.S Open. Rather, the WTA has focused on the so-called "roadmap" plan implemented this year that reduced player commitments at tournaments from 13 to 10 and increased the escortfseason by three weeks. "We've tried to have a circuit structure that makes sense to the athlete and gives them some breaks," said Allaster, noting that withdrawals are about 36% down in 2009. "We want them on the court competing," she added Tuesday. "It's good for them, for the fans and for business." The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour and the ATP Tour have rules regarding unwanted absences. wmy4238 If an ATP player cannot compete because escort a physical injury for more than six months, he can petition the tour for a "protected" ranking. Upon return, such a ranking allows him to enter eight events over nine months (whichever comes first) with his previous ranking. There is no allowance for mental breaks. Women use a similar "protected" system that also covers illness and pregnancy. Since rankings and seedings are so crucial — they determine which players gain entry to events and allow for presumably easier paths through tournaments — allowing players to keep their ranking status for a possibly career-extending sabbatical would open a tricky can escort worms. Such a policy could inadvertently penalize a player who has stayed on tour. It could knock them out escort in chengdu an advantageous seeding spot, or from a tournament altogether. Alternatively, it could help those same players from meeting a dangerous opponent such as Clijsters or Henin in an early round. "In an individual sport, the circumstances are so different that it's hard to make a policy," argues Phil de Picciotto, who oversaw Hingis' comeback in 2005 as president escort management company Octagon's athletes and personalities division. |
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