There might be "no entity happier" about the new $150M retractable roof at Arthur Ashe Stadium than ESPN, the USTA’s primary TV partner for the U.S. Open, as it "likes scheduling certainty," according to Neil Best of NEWSDAY. Best notes it is "not as if ESPN is rooting for rain," but with rain forecast for today, there is "undeniable curiosity to test drive" the roof. ESPN Senior Dir of Programming Sonia Gomez said, "It’s made our lives a lot easier. It takes the stress away for us.” ESPN VP/Production Jamie Reynolds said, "It’s a $150 million insurance policy, right? ... At least for a broadcast window, 11 to 11, you can actually have action." Even before any matches with the roof closed, the retractable structure itself has "changed the television dynamics." The "complicated shade patterns during day sessions have required frequent adjustments for cameras, but it is fine tuning the audio that Reynolds considers the most delicate challenge." Some players already have "noted they hear more background noise than in the past." Reynolds said that one TV "bonus is the roof structure itself." He said in the past, the upper reaches of the screen "would just drift off into blackness, the night." Reynolds: "Now you have this kind of girded structure, this white halo, an architectural design up there, and it energizes the whole image from a broadcast standpoint" (NEWSDAY, 9/1).
PUMP UP THE VOLUME: ESPN's Pam Shriver said the thing that is "so noticeable this year really is the noise courtside" at Arthur Ashe. She added, "A lot of the players have been a little distracted by just the chatter and the different kind of voice that the roof structure kind of keeps contained." ESPN’s Chris Fowler called the crowd noise "unbelievable” and asked John McEnroe if he thought the new roof had an impact on it. McEnroe: “That’s part of the explanation. I can’t say it’s all of it, but I’m telling you, I’ve never heard it this loud." Meanwhile, last night marked the first time the roof closed during competition. Fowler said, "(The crowd) is rooting for the roof. They haven't rooted for either player this hard tonight" ("U.S. Open," ESPN, 8/31).
