Michael Burgess: Melbournitis ailment lays NZ tournament low

Fans supporting Michael Venus of New Zealand in his match against Lucas Pouille of France. Photo / Jason Oxenham

There's a strange virus sweeping through the Heineken Open - it could be called "Melbournitis".

It comes in many forms and can strike at any time, affecting some of the fittest and most focused athletes on the planet. The main symptom is an overwhelming desire to be in Melbourne as quickly as possible - and forgo any previous commitments you may have, no matter how long they have been set in stone or how many people they affect.

We are talking, of course, about the unfortunate situation at the Auckland tournament this week, which has seen five of the top eight seeds pull out, with four of them not even taking the court.

Tommy Robredo made his apologies yesterday, unable to recover from an adductor injury sustained two days earlier and third seed Roberto Bautista Agut pulled stumps early in the second set yesterday, when he was trailing Frenchman Adrian Mannarino.

It's taken a bit of shine off the event - although Michael Venus' efforts helped redress the balance somewhat and Ernests Gulbis had the stands humming at times last night.

But the events of the last week - which began with defending champion John Isner citing fatigue in a "Clayton's" apology - have shown a disturbing pattern. It's becoming just a little bit too easy to walk away. Some players are showing the commitment levels of Warren Beatty in the 1970s.

Of course, there's no reason to believe the reasons are not genuine. And all of the relevant players have had great runs in Auckland in the past - we are not talking about any Nicolas Almagro-types here, the notorious Spaniard who was accused of "tanking" matches here in the past.

Maybe it's just a once-in-a-decade freakish series of events. And we have to remember the men's game has never been more physically demanding and will take a toll.

But the Australian Open casts a great shadow - and the tournaments in the preceding week need some more protection. If it was logistically possible, why not start the Auckland tournament midweek and finish a few days earlier?

Things need to be kept in perspective. Many of the players are only here because of the proximity to the Australian Open. And the tournament is still full of top-50 players, with a couple in the top 20.

New Zealand's international golf tournaments would be crowing from the rooftops if they could attract any names in the top 200.