"More time to breathe, that would be nice" - Iga Swiatek speaks up on heat concerns surrounding the Cincinnati Open

It has been a scorcher in Cincinnati this week. Not just the tennis being played, but the heat that it is playing in, which has concerned many, including six-time Grand Slam winner Iga Swiatek.

Many players have suffered in the heat this week, with a few being forced to retire because of the painful conditions. American star Francis Tiafoe was one of the victims, who looked to be struggling on court against Holger Rune in the last 16. Francisco Comesana had to have a timeout due to the high temperatures, but got through his match against Reilly Opelka. Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech fell onto the court due to the pulsating heat in his matchup against Felix Auger-Aliassime, with the world number 70 unable to continue.

The average temperature in Cincinnati this last week has been consistently in the low to mid 30s, with high humidity making it like a sauna on the court. These players have had to deal with it all week, but Swiatek has been one of them who has powered her way through it. She mentioned global warming and the carbon footprint everyone would leave behind, but was conflicted on this due to her preference for playing earlier matches.

Swiatek said: "Well, I think I don't know, if we overall should be making changes, you know, and be really considerate of global warming and trying to you know, make it less bad as it is in terms of how we contribute to the planet. But in terms of scheduling, I don't know, it's a tricky question cause I like early matches."

The reigning Wimbledon champion questioned whether in hotter conditions, there should be extra precautions for the players. On the other hand, she felt like they could deal with the heat. "But for sure, I mean this kind of heat is like something that we just need to survive, and it's not like we can't. I think, maybe giving like five more seconds to use the towel or have more time to breathe because it's a bit harder, that would be nice. But besides that I think we can handle it," she said.

Thankfully for the tennis players, they do have air-conditioning and ice towels to cool them down, something the Pole is grateful for being implimented. "It's nice that we have the ice towels on a bench and the AC kind of next to us. So this is for sure helpful. Without it, I think it would be much worse. But the only thing, maybe like two more seconds to use the towel, but you know, I'll always be the player to ask for that."

It has been a clinical week for Swiatek, who has made it to her third consecutive Cincinnati Open semi-final, and fourth Masters 1000 last four of the year. Without dropping a set and playing some dominant tennis, she is favoured to go all the way for her first triumph in the States since the Indian Wells Open last year.She cruised past Anastasia Potapova before receiving a bye through to the fourth round. Sorana Cirstea and Anna Kalinskaya were both beaten with ease.

She faces a tough test in the 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina, who has reached her third consecutive semi-final. The Kazakh has started to return to her best form and proved that after taking down world number one Aryna Sabalenka in the previous round. The winner will face-off in the final against one of Veronika Kudermetova or Jasmine Paolini, which will be held on Monday, 18th August.