LONDON: Carlos Alcaraz believes there is no need to change rules at Wimbledon regarding the using the roof on Center Court during hot weather after playing for more than four hours in the heat.
On the opening day of this year’s Grand Slam, the ground’s Air Temperature reached 32.3C by 4pm local time which is a new record for an opening day of the tournament. The previous best was 29.3C set in 2001. Given the heat, organisers warned those attending to take extra precaution. During Alcaraz’s marathon win over Fabio Fognini there was a 15-minute pause in the fifth set when a spectator who was sitting in the sun became ill.
Even though Center Court has a roof, there are currently no rules in place which states it should be used in hot conditions to help protect those watching matches from the sun. A policy backed by Alcaraz who is from Murcia which is having its open heat wave. The Spanish city is facing temperatures of up to 39C this week.
“Because of the heat, I think they shouldn’t close the roof because we are playing in an outdoor tournament. So the roof is just because we can’t play in another way,” Alcaraz said during his media conference.
“I think battling the heat is one of the things that we have to do. We have to deal with it in the best way possible. Obviously for the fans, and even here in London, they are not used to having this weather.
“Sitting five hours in the stand without moving, the sun hitting, I think could be really difficult to deal with for the spectators.
“But we are playing an outdoor tournament, so I think that the roof shouldn’t be closed because of it.”
As for how he dealt with the conditions on Monday, Alcaraz points out that he and other players have an advantage of playing in hot weather throughout the season at various tournaments. On top of that, the role of his team also helps.
“We have to get used to it in these conditions as soon as possible, try not to affect our game too much. But obviously, physically it is difficult. Part of the match you can feel down a little bit because of the sun hitting all the time.” He explained.
“That’s why I have my things to take during the match that I try to push myself a little bit up with my crowd, with my team, as well, thinking that it’s going to be like just a few moments in the match. I have to be ready for still battling and trying to push myself up.”
Alcaraz’s next match is scheduled to be on Wednesday in cooler conditions with the chance of rain showers. He will play British qualifier Oliver Tarvet.
