Gulf News

Popping too many painkiller­s can pop up trouble for players

- Arthur Ashe Stadium

use are risks of developing kidney failure and hypertensi­on, as well as stomach ulcers.” Goran Ivanisevic said taking anti-inflammato­ries was a necessary evil.

More trouble

“When I won Wimbledon (in 2001), I was smashing them,” he said. “I took them like candies. After a while I didn’t even feel it, it didn’t do me any good. But when you have a chance, in my case, to win Wimbledon, you take whatever, you don’t care.”

Andy Murray is one of the more careful ones. “I only take an anti-inflammato­ry now and then if I’m having problems with my back or my hips,” he said.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, twice a semi-finalist at Wimbledon, agreed. “I just hate these kind of things,” the Frenchman said. “I take them really if I will play a semis or a final (if) I have something and I don’t want the pain at all. Otherwise, I would not take it at all. I prefer to feel the pain and see how (the injury) is.

“In the past, I had so many problems in my body, I took them sometimes. But it doesn’t mean you don’t have anything. It’s just a fake. Sometimes you do worse to your body when you take these kind of things.” (Selected matches) Kirsten Flipkens, Belgium, vs. Simona Halep (5), Romania Fernando Verdasco, Spain, vs. Stan Wawrinka (3), Switzerlan­d Kateryna Kozlova, Ukraine, vs. Venus Williams (6), US Serena Williams (1), US, vs. Ekaterina Makarova, Russia Lukas Rosol, Czech Republic, vs. James Murray (2), Britain

Denisa Allertova, Czech Republic, vs. Ana Ivanovic (29), Serbia Janko Tipsarevic, Serbia, vs. Sam Querrey, US Juan Martin del Potro, Argentina, vs. Diego Schwartzma­n, Argentina

 ?? AFP ?? Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark hits a return to Taylor Townsend of United States during their US Open 2016 Women’s Singles Round 1 match at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Centre in New York yesterday.
AFP Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark hits a return to Taylor Townsend of United States during their US Open 2016 Women’s Singles Round 1 match at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Centre in New York yesterday.
 ?? PTI ?? Indian President Pranab Mukherjee presents Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award to P V Sindhu at Rashtrapat­i Bhawan.
PTI Indian President Pranab Mukherjee presents Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award to P V Sindhu at Rashtrapat­i Bhawan.
 ?? AFP ?? Taylor Townsend of United States hits a return to Wozniacki of Denmark during their match in New York yesterday.
AFP Taylor Townsend of United States hits a return to Wozniacki of Denmark during their match in New York yesterday.
 ?? AP ?? Anna-Lena Friedsam of Germany returns a shot to Roberta Vinci of Italy during their US Open match yesterday
AP Anna-Lena Friedsam of Germany returns a shot to Roberta Vinci of Italy during their US Open match yesterday

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