The London heatwave has already begun to impact proceedings at Wimbledon, where qualifying matches are underway. Meanwhile, top players, including World No. 1 Jannik Sinner, have been employing various cooling strategies as they continue their preparations at SW19 ahead of the main draw.
On Wednesday, June 24, tournament organizers were briefly forced to suspend qualifying matches as temperatures climbed to dangerous levels.
Jannik Sinner Continues Training in the Heat at Wimbledon
Sinner, the reigning champion in men’s singles, arrived at the tournament venue earlier than the rest of the field after opting out of warm-up tournaments. The World No. 1 chose to play at the Giorgio Armani Classic exhibition event (June 23-27) instead. He made his debut against Cameron Norrie on June 24, winning the match 6-3, 6-3.
With temperatures rising across parts of Europe, Sinner trained on Tuesday, using ice packs to cool his head in between drills. On Wednesday, he went a step further, using cooling vests to regulate his body temperature. According to reports, the temperatures rose above 34 degrees Celsius (93.2 degrees Fahrenheit).
Jannik spotted wearing a cooling vest today in preparation for Wimbledon 🌱
❄️🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/eaykVkrRhN
— Janniksindaily (@JSinnerDaily) June 24, 2026
Meanwhile, Day 3 qualifying matches were temporarily suspended after the intense heat caused a malfunction in the Electronic Line Calling (ELC) system. Journalist Ben Rothenberg also reported that the tournament switched ball kids with ground staff due to concerns over their well-being.
This marks the second consecutive year that Wimbledon has been affected by a heatwave in London. Last year, the tournament recorded the hottest first day in history, with the likes of Aryna Sabalenka and Daniil Medvedev coping with the heat. Multiple spectators also experienced the adverse effects as temperatures climbed to 90 degrees Fahrenheit.
Lately, tennis has been heavily affected by extreme heat worldwide, with players contending with challenging conditions in Washington, D.C., Cincinnati, the US Open, Shanghai, the Australian Open, and, more recently, the 2026 French Open.
At Wimbledon, a heat rule is in place for all singles events, including wheelchair, junior, and qualifying. The rule allows a 10-minute break between the second and the third set for women and between the third and the fourth set for men when the heat stress index reaches 30.1 degrees Celsius (86.18 degrees Fahrenheit). The heat stress index is calculated by factoring together the air temperature, humidity, and surface temperature.
Fwiw… pic.twitter.com/l6uBg7PmqJ
— Jon Wertheim (@jon_wertheim) June 24, 2026
The good news for players is that temperatures are expected to drop significantly by the weekend, setting up more comfortable conditions for the opening day of the Wimbledon main draw on June 29.
