Migraines, collapses, vomiting: How players have felt the repercussions of extreme New York heat at US Open 2024 ft. Victoria Azarenka
US Open 2024 is only in its first week, but there have already been a few notable incidents on the court and, unfortunately, many are about players feeling unwell during their matches. The hot temperatures in Flushing Meadows have had an effect on many competitors.
Former World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka suffered from migraines during her second-round match against Clara Burel and doctors were later called on. The Belarusian's blood pressure was also checked. Azarenka, however, did manage to eventually win the match and book her place in the third round of the US Open.
Marta Kostyuk won her second-round match 7-6(10), 6-1 against Harriet Dart but not without feeling the effects of the hot conditions. The Ukrainian was seen placing ice packs over her head to cool herself down. The same could be said about Aryna Sabalenka, who was doing a similar thing during her match against Lucia Bronzetti.
In the men's event at the US Open, Yoshihito Nishioka collapsed during his match against Miomir Kecmanovic before retiring. The Japanese later claimed that he felt cramps and was having trouble breathing, while also saying that he felt convulsions while being carried in a wheelchair. He eventually decided to withdraw from the doubles event.
"I was already feeling cramps around the 33rd point of the 4th set, and I was already cramping when I served at 5-4. In the final, my waist started to spasm more than my legs, and I couldn't stand up. Then my legs started to spasm too. Then my shoulder blades, both hips, sides, and thighs started to spasm repeatedly," Nishioka wrote on X.
"I started having difficulty breathing, but with the support of my team, I was put into a wheelchair (I asked for a stretcher but it didn't come) and carried away while still having convulsions. The convulsions didn't stop for about an hour, but I'm feeling better now. My body parts are hurting a lot, so I'm going to skip the doubles and go back to Japan," he added.
Another notable incident happened during the match between Tomas Martin Etcheverry and 29th seed Francisco Cerundolo, during which, the former was vomitting. Etcheverry eventually registered a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 win to reach the third round, where he will face fourth seed Alexander Zverev.
The winner of this match will take on either 16th seed Lorenzo Musetti or Brandon Nakashima in the fourth round of the US Open.
How players have reacted to the conditions at US Open 2024
A few players spoke about dealing with the weather conditions at the US Open, with Victoria Azarenka taking to X to talk about the migraines she faced.
"Migraines are absolute misery, woever had them ever probably can relate," the former World No. 1 wrote.
After defeating Lucia Bronzetti, Aryna Sabalenka was asked in her post-match press conference if she minded the heat. The World No. 3 said that the roof being closed was helpful for her.
“I’d say to have a closed roof helped a lot. When I came on court I was like ‘Ok, thanks to whoever did it,'" Sabalenka said.
Arthur Rinderknech was highly vocal about the playing conditions after his match against Andrey Rublev. The Frenchman explained how he tried to keep himself cool.
"I had an ice pack in the ice cube tray next to me, an ice towel too that I put around my neck every time we changed ends. I drank, I think, 15 one-liter bottles, so I must have drunk 15 liters! I ate everything I could but it's so hard to eat when it's so hot... It was extreme. I had lactic acid in my arms, biceps and triceps on both sides," Rinderknech told L'Equipe.
The Frenchman also said that something bad could happen in the future if the conditions persisted, referring to Daniil Medvedev once claiming that a player would die on court.
"I'm waiting for the day when there's going to be an accident. We're all wreckers on the court, not one player gives up, we don't think, we charge, it's 4,000 degrees and it's dangerous. This year, they slowed down the balls a lot, so there are longer rallies, longer matches. And the time is getting shorter and shorter between each point! Daniil (Medvedev) said that one day, a guy would die on the court. I don't know about dying, but something will happen," he added.
So far, many of the notable players have reached the third round of the US Open, including the likes of Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff, Alexander Zverev, Casper Ruud, Taylor Fritz, Grigor Dimitrov, and Novak Djokovic.