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Heat Affects First Round Play at Sydney International

By Lee Vowell

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 07: Kristina Mladenovic of France retires injured in her first round match against Ellen Perez of Australia during day one of the 2018 Sydney International at Sydney Olympic Park Tennis Centre on January 7, 2018 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Zak Kaczmarek/Getty Images)
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 07: Kristina Mladenovic of France retires injured in her first round match against Ellen Perez of Australia during day one of the 2018 Sydney International at Sydney Olympic Park Tennis Centre on January 7, 2018 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Zak Kaczmarek/Getty Images) /
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It’s hot at the Sydney International this year. In fact, it’s so warm that the play is being affected and changing the narrative of the tournament. And there were some first round surprises.

If the Sydney International is any indication, the Australian Open is going to be a hot tournament this year. Of course, the temperatures fluctuate quite a bit every year at tennis’s first major, but for players and fans alike, let’s hope it cools off before the Aussie Open starts on January 15th.

On Sunday, temperatures reached 117 degrees Fahrenheit, the hottest day on record in nearly 80 years. One of the players most affected was Kristina Mladenovic. The fifth-seed on the women’s side had to retire early from heat exhaustion. And even then she was trailing wild-card entry Ellen Perez. She was down a set and down 2-4 in the second.

This was Perez’s first win on the ATP tour and the first time she had faced a top-50 opponent. After the match, Perez told the Sydney Morning Herald, “I didn’t notice at the start until (Mladenovic) called the trainer out in the first set. And obviously it was kind of prominent in the second set, so I knew I had to get a good start and keep it going.”

Ostapenko and Goerges will not play the rest of the tournament for different reasons

French Open champion and third-seeded Jelena Ostapenko was less affected by the heat and more by her opponent, Ekaterina Makarova. Of course, Makarova isn’t a terrible player. She ranked as high as eighth in 2015. Still, for a women’s field that is currently wide open as far as who can get to the number-one ranking, Ostapenko’s loss was not a good way to start her year.

Next: Nadal optimistic about 2018 AusOpen

Julia Goerges decided it wasn’t worth playing in the heat. After defeating Caroline Wozniacki in the final of the ASB Classic, she decided to not try to beat her opponents and the heat in Sydney. She dropped out of the tournament.

One cannot really blame Goerges, though. She seems to know what she is doing. She has won three straight tournaments and hasn’t lost since October.

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