ITF TO STUDY CRAMPING VS HEAT ILLNESS / FINALLY!!! DID SOMEONE HAVE TO DIE OUT THERE FIRST ? BOTH THE 2014 AUZZIE OPEN & 2014 U.S. OPEN WERE BRUTAL !

Written by: Staff on 8th September 2014

ITF TO STUDY CRAMPING VS HEAT ILLNESS / FINALLY!!! DID SOMEONE HAVE TO DIE OUT THERE FIRST ? BOTH THE 2014 AUZZIE OPEN & 2014 U.S. OPEN WERE BRUTAL !

epaselect epa04019606 Tennis fans cool off during a heat wave at the tennis on day two of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, Australia, on 14 January 2014. Temperatures are expected to reach 41 degrees Celcius today. EPA/JOE CASTRO EDITORIAL USE ONLY AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND OUT |

When the International Tennis Federation and Grand Slam Committee take stock of the 2014 US Open one issue bound to provoke debate is the attitude to serious cramping and heat related issues following the lamentable scenes of an agonized Peng Shuai being pushed off court in wheelchair following her retirement from the women’s semi-final against Caroline Wozniacki.

Many maintained the scenes were amongst the most upsetting ever seen in the tournament and question the decision to allow the unseeded Chinese to leave the court for fully ten minutes and then return without any form of penalty.

The point of discussion will focus on the medical difference between cramping and heat illness but Peng Shuai insisted: “It was really, really hot. My body was getting hot and it was really painful there.”

Had Peng Shuai been diagnosed as cramping then the current rules designate no lengthy timeout would have been permitted and she would subsequently have been disqualified. Instead, the diagnosis was heat illness and the player was allowed to return to the court.

After an evaluation and medical timeout, during which she was treated with ice and fluids in a tunnel leading from the court, Peng tried to continue but found herself in even worse shape.

Peng Shuai, who only managed to play a couple more points before eventually throwing in the towel said: “I told the doctor: ‘I don’t want to give up. I want to try. I know I’m not going to stay long, but I want to try.’”

Shuai Peng of China (C) is attended by medical personnel after she slumped to the court during her semifinals round match against Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark on the twelfth day of the 2014 US Open Tennis Championship at the USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, New York, USA, 05 September 2014. The US Open runs through 08 September, a 15-day schedule. EPA/ANDREW GOMBERT

The rules concerning cramping were amended in 2010 because officials were concerned players were using medical timeouts for as a way to gain a tactical advantage during crucial moments. Currently players can be treated for cramping only during changeovers or at the end of a set. To get treatment, a player must forfeit the points to get to the next changeover.

US Open tournament director David Brewer defended the officials involved. “The ruling was that she did have heat illness,” he said. “When they evaluated and they treated her, they treated her for heat illness. At the end of that three minutes it was determined she would like to go back and play again. I should add parenthetically that it was determined by both the doctor and the trainer that, she’s a well-conditioned professional athlete.

“We understand that she would really could not do any more harm to herself. That’s why she was allowed to go back on the court. She never received treatment for cramping and she had heat illness. That was what the doctors called what she was exhibiting.”

The US Open heat rule was in effect during the match, meaning the players would have been allowed ten minutes in the locker room if a third set had been needed. However the match didn’t reach that stage at Wozniacki was declared the winner with the scoreboard reading 7-6,4-3.

Referring to Peng Shuai Brewer said: “She’s a highly trained athlete. If it were a situation where she could have hurt herself, the medical staff would not allow her to return.”

Topics: Australian Open, Caroline Wozniacki, Itf, Peng Shuai, tennis heat & cramping, Tennis News, US Open

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September 8, 2014 at 11:20 am

@ITF TO STUDY CRAMPING VS HEAT ILLNESS / FINALLY!!! DID SOMEONE HAVE TO DIE OUT THERE FIRST ? BOTH THE 2014 AUZZIE… http://t.co/wakb8sqEB2