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NEW YORK -- The US Open used its new, $150 million retractable roof atop Arthur Ashe Stadium during a match for the first time on Wednesday night.The shutting of the cover resulted in a suspension of play of less than 7? minutes at 3-all in the second set of Rafael Nadals 6-0, 7-5, 6-1 victory against Andreas Seppi in the second round.Nadal had the distinction of hitting the first practice and match ball under the closed roof.?I feel that the conditions are pretty similar when the roof is closed or open, Nadal said afterward.The most noticeable difference was the amount of ambient noise -- chatter from spectators, mainly -- that could be heard during points.U.S. Tennis Association executive director Gordon Smith said tournament organizers will look into that.This is New York. And yes, theres crowd noise. And yes, we want the crowds to come, we want them to be excited. We want them to cheer. And we think that over time, the fans will adjust and the players will adjust, he said. Its obvious theres going to be more noise in a trapped environment than in an open environment.Even before the roof was closed, chair umpire Cedric Mourier repeatedly implored spectators to keep quiet during points. Both Nadal and Seppi were surprised by just how many interruptions there were from fans, either moving around in the stands or simply being loud.The people, I think, are used to going to baseball [games] and keep talking, Seppi said. There really was a lot of noise.After dealing with rain delays and postponed finals for years, the USTA finally built a movable roof over its main stadium. It was available for this years tournament, which started Monday, but the first two days were dry.It took well over 10 years to come up with a solution to do this that was affordable, was architecturally imaginative, that was cost-effective, that was efficient. But we did it, Smith said. To see it work flawlessly was really incredible.A light rain began to fall while Nadal and Seppi were playing. Tournament referee Brian Earley was monitoring the weather from off to the side of the playing surface and eventually walked over to chair umpire Cedric Mourier and the two players to let them know he wanted to shut the roof.This might take very few minutes, Mourier announced to the spectators. Thank you very much for your patience.Some fans applauded or cheered. Others pulled out their cellphones to shoot photos of the structure as it moved. Even Nadal took a glance overhead to sneak a peek.ESPN tennis analyst Chris Evert took to Twitter to share her feelings on seeing the new roof in action.In an interview with ESPN during its broadcast of the match, tournament director David Brewer said: This is why we built the roof in the first place.Asked what he thought of how things went Wednesday, Brewer replied: Pretty sweet from my point of view.The USTA has said that, based on pretournament testing, the expectation is there will be little difference in playing conditions, regardless of whether the roof is open or closed.The only use of the roof until Nadals match came when it was shut at the start of the tournaments opening ceremony on Monday night, then opened while Phil Collins sang In the Air Tonight.The US Open mens final was postponed in five consecutive years because of wet weather from 2008 to 2012.?For a good show, for the comfort of the fans and for the fans in general [watching on] television, Nadal said about the new roof, its just an unbelievable improvement.Information from The Associated Press was used in this report. 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The aim is to help build trust following several shootings around the country.As a proud American, a father who lost his own dad in a senseless act of violence, and a black man, I have been deeply troubled by the deaths of African-Americans at the hands of law enforcement and angered by the cowardly and hateful targeting and killing of police officers, Jordan said in a statement. I grieve with the families who have lost loved ones, as I know their pain all too well.Jordans father was killed in 1993 in a botched carjacking in North Carolina. Daniel Green and his friend Larry Demery were convicted of killing 56-year-old James Jordan along U.S. 74 and dumping his body in South Carolina. Both were sentenced to life in prison.The high-profile Jordan has been notoriously silent over the years when it comes to his opinions on politics or social justice issues, which has drawn some criticism.But he said Monday he can no longer stay silent on the issue.I was raised by parents who taught me to love and respect people regardless of their race or background, so I am saddened and frustrated by the divisive rhetoric and racial tensions that seem to be getting worse as of late, Jordan said in the statement. I know this country is better than that. ... We need to find solutions that ensure people of color receive fair and equal treatment AND that police officers -- who put their lives on the line every day to protect us all -- are respected and supported.Spike Lee tweeted: DO NOT SSLEEEP ON MJ.dddddddddddd NBA player Jared Dudley tweeted: There u go MJ.Jordan won six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls and became one of the most popular and respected basketball players in the world.After retiring, he became the majority owner of the Hornets in 2010.Over the past three decades I have seen up close the dedication of the law enforcement officers who protect me and my family, Jordan said. I have the greatest respect for their sacrifice and service. I also recognize that for many people of color their experiences with law enforcement have been different than mine. I have decided to speak out in the hope that we can come together as Americans, and through peaceful dialogue and education, achieve constructive change.Jordan said he chose the Institute for Community-Police Relations because its policy and oversight work is focused on building trust and promoting best practices in community policing. He gave to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, the nations oldest civil rights law organization, to support its work in support of reforms aimed at building trust and respect between communities and law enforcement.While Jordan said the contributions alone wont be enough to solve the problem, he added: I hope the resources will help both organizations make a positive difference. We are privileged to live in the worlds greatest country -- a country that has provided my family and me the greatest of opportunities.The problems we face didnt happen overnight and they wont be solved tomorrow, but if we all work together, we can foster greater understanding, positive change and create a more peaceful world for ourselves, our children, our families and our communities. Cheap Jerseys China NFL Jerseys [url=ht us all -- are respected and supported.Spike rl] ' ' '