Jannik Sinner stepped in to help when his opening match at the ATP Finals was halted due to a medical emergency.
The world No. 1 had a break point against Alex de Minaur in the second set of their contest when paramedics were called to the stands.
Sinner took action, requesting a bottle of water and taking it to the crowd.
After losing the first set, De Minaur found himself in more trouble in the second. Trailing 0-40 in the fifth game, the Australian had work to do.
But play was suddenly suspended as the players and umpire were alerted to a medical incident in the crowd. De Minaur stopped his service motion and looked over.
“I think we have a medical situation in the crowd so understandably both players just taking a moment to make sure that the necessary personnel arrive quickly and deal with the situation as swiftly as possible,” commentator Lee Goodall said. “Always worrying moments, these, in big stadiums.”
Sinner looked over to the umpire and ball kid, asking for a bottle of water. He grabbed it and walked over to the stands, passing it up and receiving applause for his gesture.
Goodall added: “That’s a nice touch from the umpire and Sinner quick to lend a helping hand.”
Sinner stood at the net with umpire Renaud Lichtenstein, discussing the temperature inside the stadium. “I don’t know, I didn’t see. I saw the people moving. It’s warm for them as well,” the chair official told the world No. 1.
De Minaur quickly joined them to discuss the incident. “I feel like the air here is sticky,” Sinner said as the umpire agreed.
Sinner returned to his bench for a quick drink as he waited for the match to resume while De Minaur paced around the court.
There was a loud applause as the medics left the stands after dealing with the incident and play resumed after a four-minute break.
Despite the delay, De Minaur saved all three break points. But Sinner created one more chance and converted it to extend his stronghold on the match. He went on to win 6-3 6-4.
It’s the second time an ATP match has been halted for a medical emergency in eight days. There was a similar incident during Ugo Humbert’s Paris Masters semi-final last weekend.
Chair umpire Richard Haigh noticed someone struggling in the crowd and called for a doctor, suspending the match until the matter was dealt with.
