Australian Open 2020: Player collapses into qualifying match
In the first round of qualifying for the Australian Open 2020 , Slovenian Davila Jakupovic had to give up due to the precarious conditions caused by the bushfire.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Jan 14, 2020, 06:32 am
Jakupovic led 6: 4 and 5: 6 against the Swiss Stefanie Vögele when she dropped to her knees and could not continue playing. The world's number 180 from Slovenia had a severe coughing fit and told the officials that she was unable to continue playing due to breathing problems.
The somewhat cooler weather had brought no relief to Melbourne, which had previously suffered comparatively less from the bush fires in Australia. On the contrary. A heavy cloud of smoke hung over the location of the first Grand Slam tournament of the year, the head of the health authority in Melbourne spoke according to the British Telegraph about the "worst air quality in the world".
New situation for Tennis Australia
In response, those responsible postponed the start of the qualifying games by one hour to eleven o'clock local time. "This is all new to us," said Craig Tiley, head of Tennis Australia. We follow the advice of our medical experts and environmental scientists. The well-being of the players, fans and employees is extremely important for our decisions. "
According to the suggestions of the experts, the training sessions were suspended in the morning. At eleven o'clock the conditions seemed difficult, but not impossible. After that, however, the air quality deteriorated again. The Jakupovic incident occurred at approximately 2:30 p.m. local time.