Australian Open : Players to get 10-minute break in extreme temperatures

If temperatures at next month's Grand Slam reach hazardous levels, Men's singles players at the Australian Open will be permitted 10-minute breaks.

Organizers have introduced a "more extensive" Extreme Heat Policy after temperatures in the shade approached 40C during the 2018 tournament.

A 10-minute break was already introduced for women's and junior singles, and a 15-minute break for wheelchair singles.

The Australian Open returns in Melbourne on 14 January.

Craig Tiley, the tournament director said the wellbeing of players was the "utmost priority".

In 2018, organisers were forced to defend their heat policy after players, including six-time champion Novak Djokovic, criticized their decision not to stop play during extreme temperatures.

Under the new policy, if a reading of 4.0 is recorded on the Australian Open Heat Stress Scale in a men's singles game, a 10-minute break will be observed after the third set.

If the reading occurs during a women's or junior singles game, this break will take place between the second and third sets, as will the 15-minute break in wheelchair singles.

However, if a reading of 5.0 is recorded, the tournament referee can suspend play.

Other changes to the 2019 policy include more comprehensive measuring of weather conditions and an increase in measuring devices across Melbourne Park.

According to Carolyn Broderick, the Tennis Australia's chief medical officer : "The AO Heat Stress Scale takes advantage of the latest medical research into the effects of heat on the human body including the maximum heat stress an athlete can safely withstand, the sweat rate of that person and their core temperature," 

"The scale also accounts for the physiological variances between adults, wheelchair and junior athletes while also taking into account the four climate factors - air temperature, radiant heat or the strength of the sun, humidity and wind speed - which affect a player's ability to disperse heat from their body.”