With the humidity high and temperatures approaching triple digits, Washington’s annual ATP Tour stop isn’t for the faint of heart. So what is Mardy Fish doing this week at the Citi Open, two months after undergoing cardiac catheter ablation?
The procedure corrected an arrhythmia, which made his heart race. One episode in March was so severe that he was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance.
But Fish, ranked 13th in the world and seeded first this week at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center, has had no such sensations since his procedure on May 23. He returned last month at Wimbledon and played to his seed, reaching the round of 16.
In a teleconference earlier this month, Fish said he actually relishes the conditions he faces annually in D.C. and Atlanta, where he played two weeks ago.
“Playing in the States is my most fun time of the year, playing in the summer, playing in the heat,” Fish said. “I didn’t want to miss that.”
Heat doesn’t pose a particular risk for the 30-year-old, who was raised in Minnesota before moving to Florida. The bigger dangers are alcohol (which he has eliminated), caffeine (which he can’t quite kick) and most of all stress. When Fish started having arrhythmia in February, it was during a hectic six-week span that took him to Australia, Switzerland, Los Angeles, Marseilles, Dubai and back to California.
“I think we can draw our own conclusions how hard the schedule is for us and how tough it is on our bodies and our minds,” Fish said. “In the years that I have remaining, I’ll try to put myself in the most comfortable situations for me so something like that doesn’t happen again.”
Fish is used to questions about his body. For years he lumbered around the court with the physique of a linebacker, overpowering many opponents but outlasting few. Fish never realized his potential until he dropped 30 pounds in 2010. A year later, he cracked the top 10 for the first time.
To Fish, fatigue has long been “an ugly word,” he recently told USA Today. But now the questions are about his heart, not his weight. A long run this week in steamy Rock Creek Park would help dispel those concerns.
– Kevin Dunleavy
