US Open send Chris Evert and Donna Vekic into April
April, April: The social media experts on the US Open team glued Chris Evert and Donna Vekic - to the amusement of their colleagues.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Apr 02, 2023, 11:16 am
"Breaking News: The players will be allowed to use coaching via artificial intelligence at the US Open 2023," read the US Open's Twitter message yesterday, Saturday. With the example of a desperate-looking Carlos Alcaraz. "Play on his backhand," was the specific hint, which of course could have come from a beer-drinking club colleague on the club's terrace around the corner.
But in general: Should this be the next step in terms of "permitted coaching" now that the "real" trainers are already allowed to call in freely (also supported by technical knowledge)?
In any case, Chris Evert fell for the gag.
"How, what? Shouldn't the players think for themselves on the pitch? They can already be coached, isn't that enough? Or evaluate the AI after the match?"
Colleague Donna Vekic then enlightened her. "April, April," she answered Evert. And confessed: "I fell in too."
Only Rennae Stubbs no longer understood the world. "Ladies!!!" she wrote, followed by three laughing emojis.
However, we suspect that Evert and Vekic weren't the only ones who fell for it. And quite honestly: will this report still be considered an "April Fool's joke" in a few years' time and not actually become reality? We are not sure.