Djoker sizzles in record heat
LONDON — Down a break at 31 in the first set, defending champion Novak Djokovic kept his cool on the hottest day in Wimbledon history.
Running off 13 points in a row, Djokovic seized command and stayed in front the rest of the way on Centre Court as he beat Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen, 64, 62, 63, on Wednesday to reach the third round of Wimbledon on a sweltering day at the All England Club.
Nieminen started fast, breaking serve in the opening game and going up 31. But the topranked Djokovic won the next three games, including two at love, and never let Nieminen — playing in his final Wimbledon before retirement — back into the match.
“He came out firing some incredible shots,” said Djokovic, who also won the title in 2011 and is going for a ninth Grand Slam title. “He made, I think, four winners in the first game, four or five in the second game. He was a break up but I managed to regroup, play some good tennis and get the control on my side.”
Players wrapped ice towels around their necks during changeovers and spectators used umbrellas to block out the sun, as temperatures soared to record levels at a tournament known more for its rain delays than summer conditions.
The Met Office, Britain’s official weather service, said temperatures reached 35.7 degrees C (96.26 degrees F) at Kew Gardens, the closest observation site to the All England Club.
The previous record was 34.6 C (94.3 F) in the summer of 1976. The Met Office also said it was “the hottest July day on record” in London, with 36.7 C (98.1 F) recorded at Heathrow Airport.
Organizers kept the retractable roof over Centre Court closed in the morning to keep out the heat, then had it partially covering the spectators behind the baselines to give them shade.
Medical officials treated nearly 100 people by midafternoon for heatrelated issues but no major incidents were reported. A ball boy collapsed during a match on Court 17 and was taken off on a stretcher but was reportedly recovering well after treatment.
In one of the day’s biggest surprises, 158thranked American qualifier Bethanie MattekSands upset seventhseeded Ana Ivanovic 63, 64. MattekSands, who was out for six months last year with a left hip injury, had 32 winners, more than twice the number for Ivanovic, a former No. 1 player who reached the semifinals in 2007.
The men’s field lost one of its top players Wednesday when fifthseeded Kei Nishikori — who could have faced Djokovic in the quarterfinals — withdrew before his scheduled Centre Court meeting with Santiago Giraldo of Colombia because of an injury to his left calf.