Wimbledon faced fresh calls to introduce a heat break rule as the tournament experienced its hottest ever day on Wednesday.
Tennis players struggled in sweltering conditions and a ball boy collapsed on court.
The Met Office said a temperature of 35.7C was recorded at Kew Gardens — its nearest station to the All England Club — at 2.30pm. The previous record was 34.6C in the scorching summer of 1976.
The glorious sunshine shows no signs of abating, leaving the men’s top tennis stars to grin and bear it — while the women’s tour rules can allow for a 10-minute break between the second and third sets when the heat stress index rises above 30.1C.
So when air temperature, humidity and surface temperature top that mark, the women can ask for scheduled breaks, courtesy of Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rules. The men’s tour, run by the Association of Tennis Professionals, has no such rule.
MORE WIMBLEDON NEWS
Novak Djokovic rates Wimbledon win over Jarkko Nieminen ‘around seven or eight’
‘Sad and disappointing’ for Kei Nishikori as he withdraws from Wimbledon hurt
Djokovic and Williams help Wimbledon 2015 off to a shining start — in pictures
“I think the men should adopt it as well, especially because they have to play five sets,” said Judy Murray, Britain’s Fed Cup captain Murray and mother of British players Andy and Jamie Murray.
“A slam is such a tough thing to play in, I know you get a day in between matches but if you’re going to win a slam you need to play seven matches in 13 days.
“And for the men working across the best of five sets it’s incredibly physically and mentally draining, so I think the men should take advantage of it as well.”
John McEnroe, the three-time former Wimbledon champion, said there was a sexist element to denying men the same privileges afforded to women on tour.
"Why would that be? Reverse sexism," McEnroe said on ESPN.
“The first year I played the French (Open), at two sets to one after a third set if either of the two players — even if it was 66 degrees and windy — wanted to take a 10-minute break you could.
“The tournament directors rule the ATP too much in my opinion. The players should rule it, as they should rule Wimbledon and the other majors.”
When fellow pundit and three-time former Wimbledon winner Chris Evert suggested the players could apply pressure, McEnroe said: “If we get them all together we could do something for this wonderful sport we have, including taking a 10-minutes break if it’s so hot here at Wimbledon.”
Heat readings are taken 30 minutes before play begins, then again at 2pm and 5pm, and the WTA rule is applied on a case-by-case basis before matches begin.
Wimbledon referee Andrew Jarrett said on Tuesday the WTA heat rule had been implemented twice before at SW19, in 2006 and 2009.
The Australian Open upholds a separate extreme heat policy, when the mercury moves past 40 degrees.
Australian player Bernard Tomic, who battled the conditions and a lack of sleep to reach the third round, said: “It’s a bit interesting how the women have a different rule applied to them with the heat.
“I think ours is slightly different. I think we are allowed to play in more heat. Is it fair or not? Who am I to say? I don’t know. It’s a tough one.
“I was very dizzy out there. I didn’t sleep well yesterday and the day before. Probably getting three or four hours of sleep. I was fatigued and starting to get dizzy out there with the heat hitting me.”
Novak Djokovic, the top seed, found it less demanding as he beat Jarkko Nieminen in straight sets.
“It wasn’t as bad as I thought,” Djokovic said. “People were talking about it and predicting really difficult conditions. But I didn’t find it as difficult as I thought it might be.”
The sun was behind clouds for a long period, meaning some players felt the strength of the sun less than others. By mid afternoon it was blazing.
Maria Sharapova, the 2004 Wimbledon champion, said: “It’s much warmer in my hometown of Long Boat Key, Florida. There’s some cloud coverage. I think I’ve trained quite long in the heat over there.”
The ball boy who collapsed during the match between Australian Matthew Ebden and American John Isner was taken to hospital.
Afterwards, an All England Club spokesman said: ‘’He’s sitting up and is conversant but has been sent to hospital for a precautionary check-up.’’
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @NatSportUAE