Weekly Slice: Roddick, Nadal say ATP schedule is too demanding

First serveExhausted, injured, unhappy, spent, ailing and absent. No, that's not a list of this writer's current grumbles (I'm not absent), but instead it's a rundown on the condition of the six best tennis players on the planet.While 2009 has been an exceptional season on the men's tour, with drama and intrigue from start to finish, the leading stars of the game are paying the price for their efforts over the past 11 months.Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Juan Martin del Potro and Andy Roddick are all athletes in superb physical condition, but even they have been ground into the dust by the grueling schedule put together by the cash-hungry ATP.Roddick and Nadal both spoke out this week about the folly of having a tour that begins at the start of January and ends in early December. Sure enough, a few hours later Roddick was the latest victim of the exhaustion curse, being forced to retire hurt from his opening match in Shanghai.Federer h...