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Tennis-Scorching heat and lightning grip United States Open 2nd round

Sweatdrenched rivals fought through suffocating conditions as blistering heat grasped the secondround action at the U.S. Open on Wednesday before a lightning caution in the evening session suspended play in the outer courts.

Temperatures topped 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35 ° C) by the early night as the sun beat down on the tens of thousands of fans who arrived at the stretching Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

Madison Keys was eased to get past Australian qualifier Maya Joint 6-4 6-0 in just 62 minutes at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

I simply wished to get on and get off, the 2017 runner-up stated, after she set up a conference in the next round with Belgian Elise Mertens.

A straight-sets win was welcome for German Alexander Zverev, as he travelled past French wildcard Alexandre Muller at Louis Armstrong Stadium to establish a match with Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry.

I was at some point extremely, extremely wet. The whole court was flooded from me, Zverev stated. However I felt great physically.

While high temperatures and a whipping sun are nothing new at the year's last major, the conditions on Wednesday tested fans and gamers alike, and some professional athletes were not lucky adequate to get a fast escape from the heat.

Etcheverry vomited amidst the stifling conditions in his five-set win over compatriot Francisco Cerundolo, while Russian Andrey Rublev needed to fight back from 2 sets down to surpass Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech.

Rublev and Rinderknech covered themselves in ice towels throughout the changeovers and Rinderknech was up to the court with fatigue after a 37-shot rally. The match was briefly halted in the 2nd set when a viewer needed medical attention.

Olympic champ Zheng Qinwen positioned an ice towel around her head during her 6-7( 3) 6-1 6-2 second-round win over unseeded Erika Andreeva under the blazing sun at the Grandstand, where officials needed to call a 10-minute heat break.

Today the weather is too hot. Yeah, but all the crowd is here suffering with me from the heat, stated the Chinese seventh seed, who will next play German Jule Niemeier.

Once the sun set and the temperature dipped, a lightning warning forced organisers to suspend a thriller in between Casper Ruud and Gael Monfils on the Grandstand court.

While the roofing system was closed at Arthur Ashe Arena and Louis Armstrong Stadium, fans at Grandstand were asked to leave for their own security as Monfils and Ruud walked off the court.

Play is suspended on the outdoor courts due to lightning in the location. Fans can head to Armstrong for shelter, organisers said.

(source: Reuters)