Good morning on this spritzy Wednesday.

The task was simple: Dart across a tennis court, scoop up loose tennis balls with two hands and run the shortest distance off the court.

We found ourselves sprinting across the court earlier this summer as part of the U.S. Open’s tryouts for ballpeople, those lighting-fast runners who snatch balls off the court so play can continue.

We were among a group of news media members, invited to see if we had what it took to be one of the Open’s 277 ballpeople, ahead of the tournament’s start on Monday.

Representing New York Today, we arrived at the U.S.T.A. Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, eager for the challenge.