WATCH: Wu Yibing collapses on court due to excess heat at the Citi Open, forced to retire

Wu Yibing had a day to forget at the 2023 Citi Open.

WATCH: Wu Yibing collapses on court due to excess heat at the Citi Open, forced to retire

Wu Yibing (Credits: Twitter)

Causes for concern arose at the ongoing Citi Open in Washington this week. Chinese player Wu Yibing collapsed on the court owing to excessive heat during his opening match against Yosuke Watanuki.

Walking to his chair after a game at the end of the first set, Wu Yibing wobbled and fell over his chair. He was then helped to ease himself on the ground and was treated by medical officials. After taking the decision to retire from the match, he was helped off the court.

YouTube video

The episode, however, was not the first time Yibing experienced health issues during a tournament. Just weeks prior, a similar incident happened during his Wimbledon round one match against American Frances Tiafoe. Wu fell ill after the first set and required a medical timeout. He was cleared to resume the match but later revealed that he had been suffering from indigestion.

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Also Read: WATCH: Bianca Andreescu shouts at a disturbing spectator at the Citi Open, refuses to play until his removal

Wu Yibing’s career so far

Wu Yibing
Wu Yibing (Credits: ATP tour)

Hailing from Hangzhou, China, Wu burst onto the international scene with his victory at the Dallas Open earlier this year. The achievement has also propelled him to a career-high ranking of 54 in the world, making him China’s highest-ranked male player to date. Yibing also won the lucrative Ultimate Tennis Showdown (UTS) event held in Los Angeles a few weeks prior. He had to square off against tough players such as Diego Schwartzman, Benoit Paire and top 10 player Taylor Fritz on his way to the title.

His final against Fritz was especially dramatic given how close the match turned out to be. Yibing had earlier been defeated by Fritz in the group stages of the event. This gave the rematch in the final a lot more intrigue. Fritz started the match strongly, winning the first quarter with a score of 16-11. He continued his dominant performance in the second quarter, outplaying Wu with a score of 20-7. However, Wu mounted a stunning comeback in the third quarter, winning it by a narrow margin of 12-11.

Wu carried the same momentum into the fourth quarter. He won the fourth quarter decisively with a score of 16-9, forcing a sudden-death situation. In a thrilling finale, Wu won the first two points of the sudden death, clinching the match and the UTS title. His performances at the Atlanta Open and Citi Open have raised concerns over his ability to grind out long matches. With temperatures soaring and the mercury hitting 30 degrees, the challenging conditions are sure to take a toll on anyone’s body. The incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of athlete well-being and the need for effective measures to ensure their safety during tournaments.

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