Tennis star Daniil Medvedev resorted to using a mobile air conditioner during his Tokyo 2020 tennis match at the Ariake Tennis Park due to the heat and humidity he had to play in on Saturday.
“It was some of the worst (heat) I've ever had," said the 25-year-old Russian after he beat Kazakhstan's Alexander Bublik 6-4 7-6 in the men's singles first round.
"I mean, there is always Cincinnati, Washington, which are really hard. Actually, where I live, in Cannes, the summer can be really hard, I'm not gonna lie," added Medvedev.
“But you have to play, that's the Olympics, you go for the medal. You're not here to cry about the heat. It was really tough for both of us. We talked about this after the match on the court. It was unbelievably hot. But you need to get through it."
Medvedev went on to suggest organizers might want to consider scheduling matches later in the day.
“Like they do in Mexico, the matches maybe should start at six (pm) because the heat actually gets much, much lighter," said Medvedev. "We all try to practise at six.
“The fact that we have only one minute between changeovers is a joke. If you ask, let's say 200 tennis players that are here, I think 195 will tell you that one minute is a joke. It should be 1:30.”