82F sizzler as Murray meets ‘dreaded’ rival
AS he steps out on to Centre Court today, Dustin Brown will be expecting to feel the heat.
For the German outsider will be taking on defending champion and crowd favourite Andy Murray.
Not only that, his flowing dreadlocks will hardly be a help as the Wimbledon weather hots up at last.
Temperatures are forecast to soar towards 82F (28C) by mid-afternoon, when he is due on court.
Brown, the world number 97, is good friends with top seed Murray, even though his background is very different from that of the 30-year-old Scot.
The German-born 32-year-old, whose father is Jamaican, used to travel to tournaments by camper van, cooking and sleeping in the vehicle.
His girlfriend is Halimah Kyrgios, 28, sister of Australian bad-boy tennis star Nick, 22.
He will have her undivided support today, though, after Kyrgios pulled out of his first round match on Monday through injury.
After winning his first round match, Brown tweeted about Miss Kyrgios – who describes herself as a musical theatre performer – writing: ‘ Had a really great day for two reasons.
‘Won a tough first round at Wimbledon today and got to surprise #Babygirl for her first day of work’.
In response, she sent him a message containing emojis of a rose and a black heart.
Last month Brown uploaded a picture of himself with Miss Kyrgios with the caption: ‘ Thanks for the last two months # Babygirl... Had some nice wins together, some tough losses, but most of all a #HellOfAFunTime.’
Brown, who refers to himself as ‘Dreddy’, has dreadlocks that reach his waist.
They are the product of 21 years of growth – his hair was last cut by his mother Inge in 1996. On his chest, he has a tattoo of his father Leroy which he has been known to touch for luck on court.
While players will face sweltering conditions on court today, this year’s tournament is forecast to see its first serious rain tomorrow as the mini- heatwave sparks thunderstorms.
The Met Office has issued a severe weather warning, saying: ‘Intense downpours are likely, bringing a low risk of sudden flooding of roads, transport routes, homes and businesses.’
Friday has the potential to be another scorching day. Temperatures could reach 86F (30C) in London and the South East.
The Midlands and the East of England will see highs of 79F (26C).
The sudden rise in temperature this week is due to hot weather in Europe and high pressure in the UK.
Mark Wilson from the Met Office said the increase was down to ‘high pressure dragging in some of the warm air from the Continent’.
Temperatures will cool into the weekend, dropping to around 72F (22C).