"I do believe since the roof is on that there is no air circulation"
Tuesday 4 September 2018 16:20, UK
Roger Federer says the hot conditions were to blame for his US Open fourth-round defeat to John Millman.
Australian Millman, ranked No 55, pulled off one of the great tennis shocks by defeating world No 2 Federer 3-6 7-5 7-6 (9-7) 7-6 (7-3) to reach the quarter-finals at Flushing Meadows.
It was a game to forget for the 37-year-old Swiss, who made 76 unforced errors in what was his earliest loss at a Grand Slam since the 2015 Australian Open and the first time he has ever lost to a player ranked outside the top 50 in New York.
The match did not finish until nearly 1am but the temperature was still around 30C with extremely high humidity.
"I just thought it was very hot tonight," Federer said. "It was just one of those nights where I guess I felt I couldn't get air. There was no circulation at all.
"For some reason I just struggled in the conditions. It's one of the first times it's happened to me.
"It's uncomfortable. Clearly you just keep on sweating more and more and more and more as the match goes on. You lose energy as it goes by.
John was able to deal with it better. He maybe comes from one of the most humid places on earth, Brisbane.
"But John was able to deal with it better. He maybe comes from one of the most humid places on earth, Brisbane. I knew I was in for a tough one. Maybe when you feel like that, as well, you start missing chances, and I had those. That was disappointing.
"But, look, at some point also I was just happy that the match was over, I guess.
"When you feel like that, everything is off. But I've trained in tougher conditions. I've played in the daytime at 120[F]. Some days it's just not the day where the body can cope with it.
I do believe since the roof is on that there is no air circulation in the stadium. I think just that makes it a totally different US Open.
"I do believe since the roof is on that there is no air circulation in the stadium. I think that just makes it a totally different US Open.
"I wish I could have led two sets to love and then maybe the match would be different and I would find a way. It was just tough. I thought John played a great match in difficult conditions.
"I'm happy I'm getting a rest now. Then I come back for the Laver Cup and hopefully finish the year strong."
Millman will face Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic in the US Open quarter-finals on Wednesday.
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Tennis is back on Sky Sports screens with the Laver Cup in September while we will also have coverage of the ATP Finals in November with every match live on Sky Sports. But first, we will be across the final major of the year in New York as the US Open right through to the final with live blogs, reports, features and reaction.
