The very high temperatures in Paris put the health of tennis players at risk, the Serbian attacks the organization
The words of Nole Djokovic they always have a different weight than those of other tennis players especially if pronounced in a context like Roland Garros. The Serbian tennis player spent more than four hours on the court on Wednesday before managing to tame the Frenchman Royer. Incredible suffering with temperatures above 34 degrees. The Serbian spoke on the topic also in light of the collapse that has struck the Czech Jakub Mensik who at the end of his match against the Argentine Mariano Navone collapsed to the ground and could no longer get up. The Czech got the better of the fifth set but also risked putting his health to the test given that after the victory he literally collapsed on the pitchparamedics had to rush to the field to place him in a wheelchair and to lower his body temperature. Extreme conditions and an organization that Mensik harshly criticized after the match: “It’s crazy to play in this heatespecially when you are completely exposed to the sun. Being out there for 4 hours is wild. And in the breaks there’s really no chance to cool down. I respect the rules but common sense is needed and I really didn’t like the behavior of the chair umpire”.
Djokovic’s attack
Djokovic no less harsh: “I really don’t understand why there isn’t a clear rule for heat here. I thought it existed in all slams“, he declared. Then Nole also revealed that the rules should apply to everyone: “If you close the roof of the Centrale while everyone else continues to play in the sun it’s not right. Although obviously it would have been great for me to play indoors on such a hot dayAnd the Serbian also tries to give his solution: “The suspension of a match due to the heat should not be a problem: there are many fields, there are lights, matches can be rescheduled”.
The stop rule
There Extreme Weather Policy in Slam tournaments it determines within what limits a match can be played and when it must be suspended. This decision is determined by the Wet-Bulb Globe, an index that takes into account air temperature, humidity, exposure to sun and wind with a final result that defines the thermal stress on the body, and in Paris this index is set at 32.2°, beyond this the game will be stopped on all fields. However, if the index exceeds 30.1°, the players on the pitch will be granted a 10 minute break. But so far no match has been interrupted at Roland Garros.
