The "widespread condemnation" of Spanish tennis player Fernando Verdasco's behavior toward a ball boy at last week's Shenzhen Open "has accelerated discussion over the prospect of introducing changes to the rules on towel use," according to Stuart Fraser of the LONDON TIMES. World No. 28 Verdasco was caught on camera "angrily gesturing" toward a young volunteer after a short delay in being given his towel during his quarterfinal against Yoshihito Nishioka. He was subsequently "heavily" criticized, with Judy Murray "among those to call for an end to the practice of players asking ball boys to hand over often sweat-soaked pieces of cotton." The reaction to the Verdasco incident has been "so strong that tennis chiefs have pushed the prospect of a towel rule-change up the agenda." It will be discussed during the Grand Slam Board's annual year-end meeting in Singapore this month. The ATP "has already taken the lead in tackling this issue." In May, it was announced that a towel rack will be placed at the back of the court during the Next Gen Finals next month as part of a trial to "remove the onus on ball kids to handle towels" (LONDON TIMES, 10/2).
