How Bad Air From Fires Is Affecting Australian Open Tennis Players

Dalila Jakupovic was forced to forfeit a match earlier this week because she couldn't breathe

How Bad Air From Fires Is Affecting Australian Open Tennis Players
Smoke from bushfires covers Melbourne on January 15. (Robert Cianflone/Getty)
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Earlier this week, smoke from the massive wildfires in Australia caused Slovenia’s Dalila Jakupovic to drop out of her qualifying match at the Australian Open tennis tournament.

Leading 6-4, 5-6 in her match against Switzerland’s Stefanie Voegele, Jakupovic was overtaken by a coughing fit that was so violent that it dropped her to her knees. Unable to continue due to breathing difficulties, Jakupovic forfeited the match.

“I was really scared that I would collapse. That’s why I went on to the floor because I couldn’t walk anymore,” she said afterward. “I don’t have asthma and never had breathing problems.”

Jakupovic probably won’t be the only player to be affected by the poor air and smoke particles as some of the quality levels that have been recorded during matches equate to smoking large numbers of cigarettes a day, according to the BBC.

While that’s bad enough for spectators, the effect can be even worse on tennis players due to the effort they are exerting on the court.

“If the air going into their lungs is contaminated with other particles from the bush fires, then that can really impact on the ability of minute sacks in our lungs called alveoli to transport the all-important oxygen into the bloodstream,” explains sport and exercise science professor John Brewer. “For tennis players, that can cause extra fatigue, perhaps the loss of concentration, plus headaches and nausea, as well as slow their recovery rate afterward.”

As of now, the Australian Open is slated to begin next week. But, defending men’s champ Novak Djokovic has already suggested delaying the tournament should be considered.

“You have to consider it because of some extreme weather or conditions,” he said on Saturday. “That’s probably the very, very, last option. [But] if it comes down to … the conditions affecting the health of players, you have to consider it.”

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