DailyExpertNews
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The Australian Open match was postponed for hours due to Melbourne’s scorching heat on Tuesday, a decision that has angered some.
As temperatures approached 36 degrees Celsius (almost 97 degrees Fahrenheit), tournament organizers announced around 2 p.m. local time (10 p.m. ET Monday) that outdoor court games would be halted
“The AO heat stress scale has reached 5 and play will be suspended on the outdoor courts,” it reads. said on his Twitter account.
“This means that the game continues until the end of an even number of games or the completion of a tiebreak. No new matches will be called to court. Playing on the outdoor practice courts has also been suspended.”
The roof of the three grand slam show courts – Rod Laver Arena, John Cain Arena and Margaret Court Arena – was closed and play was allowed to continue.
Outdoor court games could resume at 5 p.m. local time (1 a.m. ET).
Earlier in the day, the Australian Open announced that temperatures had reached stage four of the “AO Heat Stress Scale”, allowing singles players to take a 10-minute break between sets – for female players, between their second and third, and for men , between the ages of four and five.
“Players have the option of staying on court or using showers or cooling rooms,” the club said.
According to the ATP, “The AO heat stress scale takes into account air temperature, radiant heat (power from the sun), humidity and wind speed, which affect a player’s ability to dissipate heat from their body. Those factors are measured in real time at five different locations in the Melbourne Park precinct.
The decision to postpone the game was not welcomed with joy by everyone.
Australian Jordan Thompson couldn’t hide his annoyance when he was told his match against JJ Wolf was abandoned after breaking the American in the second set, having lost the first.
“When did that ever happen?!” a frustrated Thompson was heard say to the umpire.
“I’ve been here when it was 45 degrees! It won’t take hours.”