OVERHEATED JO GOT UP FROM THIS TO WIN!
Konta and Kyle tough it out on a brutal day
IN distressing scenes, Britain’s No 1 Jo Konta receives medical attention after collapsing in the heat and humidity here last night. Konta was serving at set point down to Tsvetana Pironkova at the end of the second set when, suffering severe heat cramping and struggling for breath, she fell into a sobbing heap on the baseline. Konta received almost 20 minutes of medical assistance as her body was cooled with ice packs, but then picked herself up to win the deciding set for a 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 win. ‘It felt like my whole body was going into shock,’ said Konta, who also complained of blurred vision. The problem was caused by 80 per cent humidity, as the temperature was about 25C.
Jo Konta staged a near miraculous recovery from an on-court collapse caused by severe heat cramping to survive into the third round of the US open last night.
The British No 1, struggling for breath, fell into a sobbing heap on the baseline at the end of the second set, a victim of the acute humidity at Flushing Meadows.
But after two sessions of treatment she was able to continue and ended up a 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 winner against the unfortunate Bulgarian, whose rhythm appeared to be completely disrupted by the drama.
Urgent medical attention was summoned as Konta, going bright red in the face, suffered breathing problems and cramp as her second set reached its climax against the one-time Wimbledon semi-finalist.
The doctor and tour physio rushed to her side, applying ice packs as she lay on the court, having first sunk to her haunches.
The drama occurred between her first and second serves as she faced a third set point at 5- 6 in the second, having convincingly taken the first set with a sparkling display of tennis. Pironkova was forced to endure a long delay as Konta told the medics ‘ my whole body feels in shock’.
After an initial delay of around 12 minutes she sent her second serve long and was led away from the court for a further six-minute assessment before being allowed to carry on. The problem seemed to be caused by 80 percent humidity. This was not the hottest day of the tournament in pure temperature terms, with the mercury showing in the mid to late twenties.
Dominika Cibulkova also suffered heat-related problems yesterday while Heather Watson came close to retirement the day before.
As sometimes seen with cramping conditions, recovery was relatively swift. In the third set, Konta reverted to her dominant form of the first, and Pironkova seemed fairly non-plussed.
While it was a remarkable display of resolve from the British player, the Bulgarian may question how she was allowed to continue after such a hiatus for what was essentially a loss of condition rather than any traumatic injury.
Earlier in the day, on the same outside Court 13, Kyle Edmund answered any remaining questions over his stamina by making the US open third round in the steaming humidity.
The 21-year- old from Yorkshire played another excellent match to defeat American wildcard Ernesto Escobedo 7-5, 6-4, 6-4. Unlike in his previous round, which saw him beat Richard Gasquet, he was the favourite and needed to cope with that unfamiliar status.
Edmund next faces giant American John Isner, who beat him in straight sets in the French open second round this year.
‘There were a lot of good things today. I had to tough out longer rallies,’ said Edmund. ‘I made a few errors but you can’t be too hard on yourself. I stayed tough on the key points. You have to be physically strong to get to the top so I have invested a lot of time in that.’
It was another impressive performance against a highly-promising player whose forehand could run an opponent over like one of the trucks that his Mexican father drives for a living. The British No 3 has twice made the second round of Roland Garros but never won a match at Wimbledon or in the Australian open main draw. It follows on from his match-winning performance for Great Britain away to Serbia in the Davis Cup quarter-final.
Novak Djokovic was due to play last night but received a walkover when his second round opponent Jiri Vesely pulled out with an injured left arm.
It saved the world No 1 a meeting against a player who beat him earlier in the season, and gives him an extra day or two to recover from whatever is wrong with his arm or wrist.
However, it does mean he will have one less match under his belt — having only played 10 since the French open — when he next plays on Friday.
Today Andy Murray tries to join Edmund in the third round when he faces Spain’s Marcel Granollers. It would be an unexpected bonus if Dan Evans could get past Germany’s Alex Zverev or if Naomi Broady could blast through No 4 seed Agnieszka Radwanska.