Extreme temperatures forced the Australian Open’s heat protocols on Saturday, wreaking havoc on the day’s schedule and forcing fans to play without tennis on the outdoor courts for much of the afternoon.
Defending champion Jannik Sinner was among the beneficiaries of the heat protocols implemented after the Rod Laver Arena roof was closed as the Italian struggled physically and was coming off a break in the third set against US number 85 Eliot Spizzirri.
Sinner recovered to win in four sets despite the earlier drama, when temperatures in Melbourne soared towards 40 degrees Celsius in the afternoon and play on the outdoor courts was suspended until 5.30pm at the earliest.
The Australian Open heat stress scale triggered a suspension around 2:30 p.m., just as Sinner began experiencing severe cramps during his third-round match against Spizzirri. Play on outdoor courts was paused and the arena roofs were closed.
When the players returned to center court after a break of about 10 minutes, Sinner immediately broke back and looked much more like the athlete who has won the past two men’s singles titles at Melbourne Park.
The Australian Open issued a statement on social media at 2:36 p.m.
“The AO Heat Stress Scale is above 5.0,” the report said. “Play has been suspended for all matches and training is taking place on outdoor courts. The roofs at RLA.” [Rod Laver Arena]MCA [Margaret Court Arena] and JCA [John Cain Arena] will close and remain closed for the remainder of the match.
“If you are on site, seek shade and implement cooling strategies.”
The scale is based on radiant heat, humidity, air temperature and wind speed. When level 4 is reached, a 10-minute break between sets is introduced once per match. When the scale reaches 5, the roof is closed or – if a match takes place on an outdoor field – play is suspended.
Sinner had already finished his game before he started having cramps and dropped the first set against Spizzirri. The Italian applied several ice packs during the change and used a personal air conditioner while seated.
During his fourth round match at last year’s tournament, Sinner appeared to suffer from heat exhaustion, but still managed to defeat the Holger Rune in four sets.
With the roof closed and the temperature in the Rod Laver Arena in the 20s, Sinner booked his place in the fourth round, winning 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 in almost four hours.
Previously defending champion Madison in the women’s singles Keys got past Karolina Plíšková 6-3, 6-3 in just 75 minutes to book a round of 16 match against Jessica Pegula. The American said that while she was ready for the heat, she gave herself a ‘pat on the back’ for getting through a match against the former world No. 1 with minimal fuss.
“I was excited about the heat today. As a Floridian, I was ready,” Keys said. “Overall I feel very good and I’m happy that I played some clean games.”
Anticipating heat delays, the officials moved the start of Saturday’s game forward by 30 minutes. The Bureau of Meteorology forecast a top of 40 degrees at 5pm, with the mercury rising rapidly in the early afternoon. Around 8 p.m. the temperature was estimated at 38 degrees.
Just after midday, ahead of Sinner’s third round match against Spizzirri, the temperature was 32 degrees Celsius. But by 1 p.m. the temperature rose and the heat stress scale had reached 3.2. An hour later the time had already come exceeded 4, leading to a 10-minute break between the third and fourth sets, before passing 5 about 30 minutes later.
Alex De Minaur said after his win over Frances Tiafoe on Friday night that the heat “will be a lot”.
“You have to make sure you hydrate, eat right, recover right, take care of that [you prepare] everything leading up to the game, and as the game progresses, ice towels from the very first game,” he said.
“Make sure you stay in the shade as much as possible, and be prepared to feel uncomfortable. But sometimes that’s part of tennis and it’s one of the factors that play a role in this beautiful game that we have.”
Officials expect there will be a large crowd on Middle Saturday – traditionally one of the busiest days of the tournament – due to the heat. As temperatures rose Saturday afternoon, the water misters and free sunscreen were popular.
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