THE way tennis deals with injured players has been one of the major talking points here at this year’s US Open and could yet prompt a change in the rules to prevent those with existing problems from risking further injury and denying others a place in the draw.

The retirement of New Zealand’s Marina Erakovic yesterday, with a knee injury she’s been battling since Wimbledon, took the total of players to quit during matches so far this week to nine.

Six men and one woman failed to make it through their opening matches on Monday, prompting renewed debate about the situation.

The vast increases in prize money in recent years – first-round losers here get $39,500 each – has been cited as a reason why more and more players push themselves through injury.

For Russia’s Vitalia Diatchenko, who lasted eight games against the world No.1 Serena Williams on Monday night before quitting with an ankle injury, the first-round losers cheque will equate to around 20 per cent of her total prize money for 2015 to date.

Both the ATP and WTA have discussed the situation, with the American John Isner suggesting that in such a situation – where there’s an existing injury – players who withdraw should receive a percentage of the prize money, with the rest going to the lucky loser who replaced them.

Players spent the entire year getting their ranking up to the point that they earn direct entry to a grand slam, and few people believe they should not receive their prize money.

Many of the withdrawals in New York were not from existing injuries – the heat has been a big factor on the opening two days – but as a spectacle, seeing Diatchenko clearly injured from the start will not sit well with the Tours and the grand slams.

Williams said she was unsure how the rules could be changed in a way that satisfied everyone involved.

“I don't know,” she said. “I mean, you play to get compensated. You go to work to get compensated. [But] I guess, if you have a sick day in regular life you still get compensated.”

Meanwhile, this year’s event has also been notable for a new innovation: mid-match interviews.

After winning the first set of her first-round match with another American, Sloane Stephens, Coco Vandweghe was interviewed, briefly, on court by Pam Shriver for ESPN.

The two questions were innocuous enough but though broadcasters are keen to expand the innovation to more players throughout the tournament, the response from other players was not overly encouraging.

“Did I just see Coco do an interview on court, mid match, after the first set?” last year’s runner-up Caroline Wozniacki wrote on Twitter. “Surely you would wanna focus on the game out there? No?”

ESPN said yesterday they had asked about 15 players so far if they’d be willing to do it – Chris Evert said the response was about 50-50 – and they plan to ask more players during the event.

Only the winner of the first set is interviewed, players have to agree to it beforehand and even if they agree, they have the prerogative to change their minds at the last minute.

“It was definitely different and bizarre,” Vandeweghe said. “But at the same time I was still focused. I kept thinking, just stay focused; don't lose it. You never know what can happen. I have no idea what I said though."

Novak Djokovic said he liked that tennis was trying new things but said he would not be doing it here while Williams said she was too “old school” to risk losing her focus, especially with a calendar grand slam on the line.

“Maybe that's the future of tennis," she said. "Hopefully they don't make that mandatory.

“I think it's great for some viewers, to get in the mind of the athletes. But I'm really focused the whole time. I'm really trying to think about what I want to do. I don't necessarily want to answer questions about anything. I just want to be in that moment and kind of focused.”

“That's the integrity of tennis, when you think about it. It's just you on the court. It's not a reporter. It's not a coach. It's just you in that moment. I kind of love that. It's the only sport where you have that.”