Today is likely to be the hottest day of grand slam tennis ever.
Although it might not be the worst-ever conditions – with outdoor matches shifted to night sessions and other games played with the roof closed, it is not as brutal as earlier Australian Opens played with no roof on days of extreme heat.
It hit 36.7 degrees at Wimbledon in 2015. In 2007, the on-court temperature at the Australian Open hit 50 degrees.
Aryna Sabalenka uses an ice pack.Credit: AP
The hottest day on record in New York is 41 degrees, back in 1936. It wasn’t during the tennis, though.
In 2018, the temperature hit 35.5 degrees and the humidity was also a punishing 47 per cen,t which left players gasping for breath.
In 2023, after four successive days of heat in the mid-30s Daniil Medvedev said: “You cannot imagine. One player (is) gonna die, and they’re gonna see.”
The hottest day recorded in Paris was 42.6 degrees on July 25, 2019. The French Open is held in May-June.
Players can lose more than three litres of sweat during a match.
The roof was open as Sabalenka beat Iva Jovic to progress to the semis.Credit: AP