By Shrivathsa Sridhar
LONDON (Reuters) -Wimbledon experienced its hottest-ever start on a scorching Monday as temperatures climbed to 32.3 degrees Celsius and transformed the All England Club into a sizzling spectacle of sun hats, shade-seekers and fans reaching for water bottles.
Carlos Alcaraz battled to victory over Italian Fabio Fognini on a searing Centre Court in the evening but not before play was stopped for over 15 minutes in the fifth set after a woman in the stands needed medical attention and left on a wheelchair.
The All England Club said the air temperature, confirmed by the French meteorological administration Meteo France, eclipsed the previous opening-day high of 29.3 degrees set at the start of the 2001 edition.
Fans were left feeling like they were in the Australian Open furnace rather than London as Monday’s temperature threatened to surpass the tournament record of 35.7 degrees, which was reached in 2015.
Alcaraz was frequently reaching for an ice-packed towel during his clash with Fognini, as did a number of other players on the various courts, with spectators almost looking on in envy as they could only fan themselves to ease the oppressive heat.
Wimbledon’s heat rule was applied and players were allowed to take 10-minute breaks during their matches.
Daniil Medvedev slumped to a four-sets defeat against the unheralded Benjamin Bonzi and the Russian ninth seed said the conditions had made it difficult for both players.
“Physically it was not easy … I mean, I’ll never say he won because of the heat,” Medvedev said.
“But the heat is not easy to play. I do think if you ask him, probably he was not enjoying the heat either.”
‘CLOSE TO RIO’
Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca said he felt more at home under the unforgiving sun as he sent local hope Jacob Fearnley packing in three sets.
“For me it was hot. Actually close to Rio sometimes. In the summer, Rio is very hot. I’m more used (to it) than the European people,” the 18-year-old said.
Fearnley’s compatriot Cameron Norrie was taking no chances, with a proper plan formulated to deal with what he described as a “shock to the system” during his four-set win over Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut.
“Obviously just tried to drink as much as I could. It was really key to keep the bottles cold … I had to bring like a little thermal thing to keep the bottles in,” Norrie said.
“A few times I was asked to fill up the water, and it was warm water. It was quite tough for me to really stay cool on the court. They did a really good job with the ice towels. That was amazing, but it was tough.
“I’m a guy that sweats a lot. I was definitely feeling the heat today. It was a bit of a shock to the system with that, but I did everything I could with the resources I had to do my best with the hydration and everything.”
Organisers said apart from making sure there was plenty of ice on courts and having more than 100 water points around the grounds, there were also protocols in place for the ball kids, with all of them protecting their necks with cooling scarves.
“We’ll be rotating them more if we feel we need to,” All England Club Chief Executive Sally Bolton told reporters in the morning as she outlined the club’s preparedness.
“For colleagues working around the grounds, we’ve got plenty of changes in shift patterns to make sure that they are getting regular breaks.
“For the guests that will be joining us, we’re offering the same advice as medical professionals – Come prepared, bring a hat, wear sunscreen, wear light clothing if you can, and take breaks out of the sun.
“We’ve got a significantly sized medical team, so we’ve got people to help if needed. We’re not used to these temperatures. But we are absolutely ready for it and actually delighted that it’s sunny and not wet like it was last year.”
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in London; Editing by Ken Ferris)
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