Casper Ruud Survives Heatstroke Scare to Beat Roman Safiullin in French Open First Round

Casper Ruud survived a heatstroke scare to beat Roman Safiullin in a French Open first-round match on Court Simonne-Mathieu, winning 6-2, 7-6(5), 5-7, 0-6, 6-2 after a contest that lasted three hours and 56 minutes.

“Heat wave at French Open impacts the clay courts and sends fans to sprinklers Heat wave at French Open impacts the clay courts and sends fans to sprinklers PARIS (AP) — Tennis players at the French Open say they haven’t experienced conditions this hot at Roland Garros since the Paris Olympics”

AP News

Ruud said the extreme conditions left him “walking around like a zombie almost,” and he described feeling “really dizzy, really tired” during the fourth set.

AP News

The match swung after Ruud spurned five match points in the third set, with Safiullin winning 11 consecutive games to force a decider.

BBC reported temperatures were said to have reached 33C on the first two days of the tournament in Paris, and Ruud used ice towels and water to try to cool himself during changes of ends.

Ruud’s recovery carried him past the collapse, as both players left the court for an extended period before the fifth set and Ruud ultimately completed the win.

In a post-match news conference, Ruud said that in the fourth set he had felt “really dizzy and just really tired and walking around like a zombie almost.”

The New York Times described how Ruud left the court at the end of a grueling 75-minute second set to change shoes drenched in sweat, and it said he received medical attention for illness after the first and third games of the fourth set.

BBC

Safiullin also required treatment, with the BBC noting he had injury problems which required treatment towards the end of the fourth set and that both players left the court for an extended period before the fifth set.

Ruud said he allowed himself to lower intensity in the fourth to get his pulse and body temperature down as much as possible, and he said, “Luckily, that ended up working.”

After the fifth set began more than 16 minutes later, the question became whether the ill player could beat the injured one, and Ruud’s power gradually returned as Safiullin succumbed to the punishing conditions.

Ruud’s win kept his Paris campaign alive as he advanced to the second round, where he was set to play Hamad Medjedović next.

“Casper Ruud survived a fitness scare and a furious fightback from Roman Safiullin to book his place in the second round of the French Open on Monday”

beIN SPORTS

The BBC framed Ruud’s progress as a continuation of his French Open history, noting he is a two-time runner-up at Roland Garros and that he completed a 6-2 7-6 (7-5) 5-7 0-6 6-2 victory.

AP reported that the French Open’s opening two days of the clay-court Grand Slam saw temperatures soar to 33 degrees C (91 F) and said it was forecast to stay that way for the entire first week.

AP also described the tournament’s heat protocol, saying that if the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) reaches 30.1 degrees C (86 F) or higher, 10-minute cooling breaks can be installed between the second and third sets for women’s matches and between the third and fourth sets for men’s matches.

With the conditions already affecting multiple players, AP said a retirement and medical timeout occurred during the opening days, including Canadian player Gabriel Diallo retiring midway through his match against James Duckworth on Sunday.