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Sep 15, 2013

AndYoni make tennis Kiddush Hashem, pulling a Sandy Koufax

Tennis Duo Israeli stars playing in the Davis Cup, Andy Ram and Yoni Ehrlich, also known as AndYoni, had a nice kiddush hashem this past week, when they refused to play tennis on Yom Kippur.

It might sound easy, as one can think of the scorn and anger that would have been heaped on them had they played on Yom Kippur - it seems like it would be an easy decision to not play. But when competing in the Davis Cup, the demand to change the schedule takes on another level. The organizers can say no, they can be disqualified from a major tournament, they can lose rankings and lots of money.. it is not really such an easy decision.

They were set to play a match on Friday, late enough in the day that there was a concern it could possibly extend into the beginning of Yom Kippur. They made a demand that the match must be stopped an hour before sunset at the latest, and if necessary they would be willing to continue it on Sunday. They came to an agreement with the ITF, the International Tennis Federation, but had already said that whether it is officially halted or not, they would not play on Yom Kippur - even if it means forfeiting the match.

In the end, everything worked out. They began the match with the decision that at a certain point they would just walk out for Yom Kippur. They did not need to because they won the match with enough time to leave for Yom Kippur. Their victory, by scores of 3-6 7-5 6-1 5-7 3-6 gives the Israeli team the lead over the Belgians by 2-1, for now.

I am happy they won early, but it would have been nice to see them walk out of the match because of Yom Kippur. it would also would have made a lot more press and gotten more exposure than just a simple win with a byline about the Yom Kippur issue.







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4 comments:

  1. Nice! Nice uniforms, too. :-)

    Um,...I hope they had time to eat, and to re-hydrate after the match, not an easy endeavor.

    Nonetheless, that they refused to play was an important action.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Are they being interviewed indoors (and the upper part of the arena is dark) or is it nightfall (i.e. already Yom Kippur during the interview)?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. no idea, but considering the big deal they made out playing on yom kippur, I would hope iot is indoors or maybe the day was highly overcast

      Delete
  3. " but it would have been nice to see them walk out of the match because of Yom Kippur. : ?!?
    WHAT? After they made their point, you want them to lose from it? Where's your love for a fellow yid?

    ReplyDelete

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