- Ball girl collapses during opening ceremony
- Worrying incident occurred on live television
A ball girl carrying a flag fainted during the Australian Open opening ceremony on Sunday morning, and hot and humid conditions are likely to blame.
The terrifying moment occurred at Melbourne Park as the ball boy carried the Aboriginal flag in a guard of honor behind Australian tennis great John Newcombe.
In the clip, Newcombe can be seen speaking to the camera as a flag hits the deck behind him.
There was later a delay in the procedure as officials rushed to help the young woman, before taking her away in a wheelchair.
A spokesperson for the event told reporters that the ball girl is “absolutely fine.”
Shortly after, the sky opened and rain fell, suspending play on the outdoor courts.
Ball girl fainted during Australian Open opening ceremony
An Australian Open spokesperson told reporters that the ballgirl is “absolutely fine.”
“What you'll find on the surface are actually the slipperiest lines,” John Millman said in a commentary for Nine.
'That's a different type of paint they use to make those white lines. That Melbourne sign at the back of the court… it also gets very slippery.
“There is only one surface on which you can continue playing with this type of rain and that is the Roland-Garros courts at the French Open.”
The rain fell as local hope Omar Jasika threatened to turn the tide against Hugo Gaston.
Frenchman Gaston won the first set 6-2.
But wild card Jasika, 27, created six break chances, none of which he could convert, in the second game of the second set before play was suspended due to rain on Sunday, with the pair trapped at deuce. .
The action continued indoors on the show's three main courts.
Jasika rose to prominence in 2014 when he became the first player in 28 years to win men's singles and doubles titles at the US Open.
Rain stopped play on outdoor courts early on day one of the Australian Open
The Australian has won just one of his four previous Grand Slam singles matches in the main draw, and that was at the 2016 Australian Open.
Gaston lost his only previous match with a local at the Australian Open, beating Christopher O'Connell in the 2022 first round.
Jasika is one of five Australians in action on day one at Melbourne Park along with Adam Walton, Aleksandar Vukic, Li Tu and Daria Saville.
Two-time women's champion Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus begins her title defense on Rod Laver Arena on Sunday night against American Sloane Stephens, winner of the 2017 US Open title.
Other big names in action on day one include men's No. 2 seed Alexander Zverev of Germany and sixth-seeded Norwegian Casper Ruud.