Extreme heat stopped play on day two at the Australian Open as tournament chiefs stopped play on all courts without a roof due to soaring temperatures.

By the middle of the afternoon on Tuesday, the tournament's heat stress scale had reached 5, the point at which play has to be suspended.

Matches were allowed to continue through to the end of an even number of games in a set, or the end of a tie-break, before players left the court.

It led to an interruption of around two hours on all courts without a roof.

The tournament's heat policy takes account of radiant heat – the strength of the sun – plus air temperature in the shade, relative humidity and wind speed.

An initial warning of what might be set to happen came when the tournament delivered a first weather report, stating: "At 1:12pm the AO heat stress scale reached 4 and the heat policy came into play.

"This means singles players can take a 10-minute break – women between the second and third set and men between the third and fourth set of their matches. Players have the option of staying on court or using showers or cooling rooms."

Less than two hours later came confirmation play would have to stop, except for those courts where the players had shade thanks to a roof.

The tournament announced: "The AO heat stress scale has reached 5 and play will be suspended on the outside courts. There will be no play on outside courts before 5pm."

Andy Murray's gripping first-round match against Matteo Berrettini on Rod Laver Arena, the main show court, was able to continue due to that show court's roof, while play also continued on Margaret Court Arena and John Cain Arena.

American Taylor Fritz, used to playing in high heat in his native California, said he did not find conditions too oppressive.

His match on John Cain Arena began without a roof, before it was closed to allow play to go on.

"It's hot, but it's dry heat, so I don't really mind it too much," said Fritz, a dark horse for the title this year.

"Playing in D.C. last year, US Open some years, is much worse because it's so hot, plus the humidity. When it's like today, it's not that humid. I don't think it's as bad.

"As long as it's this dry type of heat, then it's not that big of a deal. If it was this hot plus humidity, then it might be an issue. It would be pretty annoying to deal with."

Taylor Fritz claimed the deciding victory as the United States stormed into an unassailable 3-0 lead over Italy in the United Cup final.

Jessica Pegula and Frances Tiafoe paved the way for Fritz to be the hero with their victories over Martina Trevisan and Lorenzo Musetti earlier in Sunday's final in Sydney.

While Musetti retired hurt while trailing 6-2, WTA world number three Pegula dispatched Trevisan in straight sets, carrying on the form that saw her defeat Iga Swiatek in the USA's semi-final win over Poland.

And Fritz ensured that the inaugural United Cup went his nation's way with a 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (7-6) win over Matteo Berrettini, who clawed back the first championship point but was unable to prevent his opponent taking the second.

"It's great. It’s amazing for the team to win this event. We came in with really high hopes, or at least I did, for the event," said Fritz, who is ranked ninth in the world by the ATP after winning three titles in 2022.

"I was really happy to be in that position to clinch the match."

There were jubilant scenes as the USA team rushed to celebrate with Fritz, though Tiafoe was perhaps slightly overzealous.

"Just the emotions when you win and everyone comes running at you, it’s amazing," Fritz said. "I don’t know if you saw the replay but Frances basically headbutted me!"

Iga Swiatek dragged Poland into the semi-finals of the United Cup with inspired performances in her singles and doubles matches against Italy.

Poland trailed after Lorenzo Musetti and Matteo Berrettini secured wins against Daniel Michalski and Hubert Hurkacz respectively, only for Swiatek and Magda Linette to level things with respective singles victories over Martina Trevisan and Lucia Bronzetti.

That sent the Brisbane city final to a decider in the mixed doubles, which Swiatek and Hurkacz won with ease 6-1 6-2 against Musetti and Camilla Rosatello, though there was a pause in the second set to dry rainfall on the court.

Despite defeat, Italy also advanced to the final four as the city finals loser with the best record.

It was more routine in Sydney as the United States eased to a 4-1 win against Great Britain.

Madison Keys came from a set down to beat Katie Swan, while Jessica Pegula eased past Harriet Dart 6-2 6-0 after Cameron Norrie had defeated Taylor Fritz in three sets.

Despite going a set behind, Frances Tiafoe came back to beat Dan Evans 3-6 7-5 6-3 to clinch the win for his country, before Pegula and Fritz added some gloss after beating Dart and Evans in the mixed doubles.

The third city final in Perth included a thriller as Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas beat Borna Coric 6-0 6-7 (4-7) 7-5. Donna Vekic had no trouble getting Croatia on the board as she eased past Despina Papamichail 6-2 6-0.

Maria Sakkari put Greece 2-1 ahead when she beat Petra Martic 6-3 6-3, but Borna Gojo defeated Stefanos Sakellaridis in straight sets to make it 2-2.

However, Greece secured the win and their place in the last four after the pairing of Sakkari and Tsitsipas saw off Martic and Gojo 7-6 (8-6) 6-4.

Greece will take on Italy in the semi-finals, while Poland face the USA, with both taking place in Sydney on Friday.

Rafael Nadal suffered his second defeat in as many matches after going down 3-6 6-1 7-5 against Alex de Minaur at the United Cup.

The 22-time grand slam champion, who was also beaten by Great Britain's Cameron Norrie in his opening match, is still seeking his first victory of the season with the Australian Open just around the corner.

Home favourite De Minaur delighted the Sydney crowd by recovering from a set and break down to claim his maiden win over the world number two.

"I think it's definitely up there [as one of my best wins]," he said. "It's one of those achievements that you have unlocked in your career.

"But also, it's a big win for myself, one that I really needed. I'm going to cherish and use, take all the confidence from this and be able to hopefully take it to have a good [Australian] summer."

Spain and Australia are unable to progress to the City Finals, but Nuria Parrizas Diaz levelled the Group D tie with a 6-1 6-3 victory over Maddison Inglis.

The USA, who required just two points against Germany to advance to the next stage, set up a showdown with Great Britain after Taylor Fritz and Madison Keys enjoyed straight-set successes over Alexander Zverev and Jule Niemeier respectively. 

Italy moved to the brink of joining them in the City Finals after taking a 2-0 lead over Norway. Lorenzo Musetti overcame Viktor Durasovic in straight sets, while Martina Trevisan edged out Malene Helgo in three.

Greece require one win from their final three matches against Belgium to also advance, Stefanos Tsitsipas hit 12 aces on the way to defeating David Goffin 6-3 6-2 to level the Group A showdown at 1-1.

Poland's winner-takes-all Group B clash with Switzerland is also finely poised at 1-1. World number one Iga Swiatek beat Belinda Bencic 6-3 7-6 (7-3), before Marc-Andrea Huesler's 6-3 6-2 victory against Daniel Michalski.

Stefanos Tsitsipas opened his United Cup campaign with a comeback victory over Grigor Dimitrov in Perth.

ATP world number four Tsitsipas is one of the headline names in action at the event, which is acting as a warm-up tournament for the Australian Open.

After going a set down to his Bulgarian opponent in his first game of the inaugural tournament, Tsitsipas hit back with a strong second set before holding his nerve in a tense tie-break in the decider, securing a 4-6 6-2 7-6 (7-4) win.

Tsitsipas's team-mate Despina Papamichail continued Greece's strong start, also coming from a set down to beat Isabella Shinikova 3-6 6-4 6-1.

Great Britain opened with a pair of victories, Cameron Norrie and Katie Swan earning straight sets triumphs over their Australian counterparts in Sydney.

Norrie, who was initially set to play Nick Kyrgios prior to the Wimbledon finalist's withdrawal due to an ankle injury, eased to a 6-3 6-3 victory over Alex De Minaur, while Swan defeated Zoe Hives. 

The United States are also taking a 100 per cent record into day two of the tournament, after Taylor Fritz and Madison Keys overcame Jiri Lehecka and Marie Bouzkova respectively, while France pair Arthur Rinderknech and Alize Cornet got off to winning starts against Argentina's Francisco Cerundolo and Maria Lourdes Carle.

In Brisbane, Swiss hope Belinda Bencic secured a 7-6 (7-0) triumph over Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan and Beatriz Haddad Maia, the Brazilian world number 15, dispatched Italy's Martina Trevisan 6-2 6-0.

Canada will play Italy in the Davis Cup semi-finals after coming from behind to defeat Germany 2-1 in Malaga.

Initially a wildcard for the finals as the highest-ranked losing nation in the qualifiers, the 2019 runners-up are through to the last four for the second time in three years - and fourth time overall.

Felix Auger-Aliassime overcame Oscar Otte in straight sets - condemning him to a fourth straight singles defeat - to set up a doubles decider and cancel out Denis Shapovalov's earlier loss to Jan-Lennard Struff.

Shapovalov and Vasek Pospisil appeared in trouble when they lost the opening set 6-2 against Tim Puetz and Kevin Krawietz, who had won all eight Davis Cup matches when paired together.

But the Canadian duo, who hit a combined 11 aces during the contest, rallied to force a deciding set, which they took 6-3 to inflict a first defeat on their opponents.

Earlier in the day, Italy also came through a deciding doubles match to beat the USA and secure their first semi-final appearance since 2014.

Despite missing the injured Jannik Sinner and Matteo Berrettini, the Italians were appearing in their first quarter-final for six years, and they made a strong start with Lorenzo Sonego hitting 17 aces on the way to defeating Frances Tiafoe 6-3 7-6 (8-6).

Targeting only their fourth semi-final since 2007, 32-time winners USA rallied with Taylor Fritz overcoming Lorenzo Musetti in straight sets to force the first deciding double match of the finals.

There, just one break per set was enough for Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini to beat Tommy Paul and Jack Sock 6-3 6-3, and send the 1976 champions through.

Novak Djokovic sealed his place in the final of the ATP Finals after edging past Taylor Fritz 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (8-6) in Turin on Saturday.

The Serbian, who is bidding to equal Roger Federer's record of six ATP Finals titles, overcame Daniil Medvedev in a bruising three-hour contest on Friday, and he was again made to work hard for victory against spirited American Fritz.

Djokovic struck first in the opening set with a break to love in the fifth game, yet Fritz responded immediately to level at 3-3.

A tie-break was needed to separate them after that, with Djokovic's superb forehand winner sealing the first set in style.

Fritz broke Djokovic in the opening game of the second set, but a simple missed backhand from the American helped his opponent break back to make it 5-5.

That set the stage for a high-quality tie-break, which Djokovic ultimately won to claim victory in one hour and 54 minutes.

"I had to fight to survive," Djokovic said on court afterwards. "I didn't feel very reactive today or very comfortable.

"I knew coming into today's match from yesterday's gruelling battle against Medvedev it would take me some time to adjust and find the dynamic movement I need against Fritz, who is one of the best servers on the tour.

"I am very pleased to have overcome this one as I don't think it was one of my best days with my tennis, but I managed to hang in there."

Should Djokovic beat Casper Ruud or Andrey Rublev in Sunday's final, he will claim the largest payday in tennis history, with $4,740,300 up for grabs for sealing the trophy undefeated.

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Djokovic – 4/1
Medvedev – 15/1

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Djokovic – 21/19
Medvedev – 31/26

BREAK POINTS WON

Djokovic – 2/2
Medvedev – 2/2

Having qualified for his first ATP Finals, Taylor Fritz is now through to the last-four as he prevailed 7-6 (7-4) 6-7 (5-7) 6-2 against Felix Auger-Aliassime in a match where the winner would advance from the Green Group.

There were no break point opportunities in the first set on the back of elite serving from both players, with Fritz converting 90 per cent (19/21) of his accurate first serves into points. However, after giving up a mini-break to begin the tiebreaker, Fritz steadied and snatched three mini-breaks of his own to take the opener.

It was more of the same in the second set, with Auger-Aliassime taking his turn to dominate with his serve. In a near carbon-copy, the Canadian won exactly 90 per cent (19/21) of the first serves he landed fair, and Fritz had to save the only three breaks points of the frame to force another tiebreaker.

When Auger-Aliassime's serve slipped in the third set, so did any chance of taking the match. He won only 52 per cent of his service points (14/27) in the frame, while Fritz maintained a stellar level at 89 per cent (16/18), securing a double-break and the victory.

Having finished second in his group, Fritz will next take on the winner of the Red Group, which will likely be Novak Djokovic as he is the only undefeated player through two games.

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Fritz - 5/1

Auger-Aliassime - 9/2

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Fritz - 32/21

Auger-Aliassime - 36/31

BREAK POINTS WON

Fritz - 2/5

Auger-Aliassime - 0/3

Casper Ruud secured his place in the last four of the ATP Finals and ensured Carlos Alcaraz will be the year-ending world number one by beating Taylor Fritz on Tuesday.

Ruud made it two wins out of two in the Green Group to seal his semi-final spot with a 6-3 4-6 7-6 (8-6) defeat of Fritz in Turin.

The third seed eliminated Rafael Nadal when he won the first set and in doing so guaranteed that injured 19-year-old Alcaraz will be the youngest player to be at the top of the ATP rankings at the end of a year.

Ruud stormed into a 3-0 lead and did not allow Fritz a way back into the first set, but the American broke for the first time to level the match when his opponent was serving to stay in the second.

The battling Fritz fended off two break points in the fifth game of the deciding set and saved two match points as he fought back from 5-1 down in the tie-break to draw level at 6-6.

Norwegian Ruud was not to be denied, though, becoming the first player to reach the semi-finals when eighth seed Fritz drilled a forehand long at the Palbata Alpitour.

Fritz will do battle with Felix Auger-Aliassime on Thursday for a place in the last four.

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Ruud - 14/3
Fritz - 15/0

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Ruud - 36/4
Fritz  - 36/1

BREAK POINTS WON

Ruud - 1/5
Auger-Aliassime - 1/4

Taylor Fritz stunned Rafael Nadal on his ATP Finals debut on Sunday, producing a powerful display to beat the 22-time grand slam winner 7-6 (7-3) 6-1 in the duo's group-stage opener.

The American put Nadal under pressure from the off in Turin, failing to give up a single break point as he dominated on his own serve to take the 36-year-old to a tie-break in the opening set.

Nadal allowed Fritz to seize the initiative with a double fault at the start of that tie-break, and the American grasped his opportunity by clinching the first set with a big forehand winner.

The top seed's struggles continued into the second set as Fritz, moving well and dictating proceedings from the baseline, claimed the match's first break four games in before going 5-1 up by repeating the trick in a back-and-forth sixth game.

Fritz then wrapped up the win with another dominant display of serving, clinching his second victory over Nadal and denting the Spaniard's bid to win a title that has eluded him throughout his illustrious career.

Having been beaten by Tommy Paul at the Paris Masters and Frances Tiafoe at the US Open, Nadal has now suffered three consecutive defeats, and he must bounce back when he faces Felix Auger-Aliassime on Tuesday.

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Nadal – 7/4
Fritz – 8/1

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Nadal – 18/4
Fritz – 23/2

BREAK POINTS WON

Nadal – 0/0
Fritz – 2/9

In recent years, the notable absentee at the ATP Finals has been Roger Federer, with his last appearance in the tournament coming in 2019.

The lack of Federer at the showpiece event will be felt even more apparent this year after the Swiss maestro retired from tennis in September, though it is the absence of a player at the other end of his career that is more relevant in Turin.

World number one Carlos Alcaraz had to withdraw from the tournament after suffering an abdominal tear, which means his status at the top of the men's game is in jeopardy.

Rafael Nadal has spoken well of his 19-year-old compatriot in the past, but is not ready to pass the torch just yet, and could even topple Alcaraz from his number one spot.

The 22-time grand slam champion has finished as year-end number one five times previously, most recently in 2019. Should he accomplish the feat again this year it would put him in joint-second for most year-end finishes at the top of the ATP Rankings (since 1973) along with Pete Sampras (six).

In order to do so, Nadal will need to win the tournament, something he has never done before.

However, he comes into his 11th appearance in good form, and has won 32 per cent of his return games in 2022, the highest percentage by any player this year, and has converted 43.8 per cent of his break points in 2022, the third best amongst all players.

 

Stefanos Tsitsipas, meanwhile, is the other competitor who can knock Alcaraz off top spot, though his task to do so is a little more complicated as he needs to win every match on the way to the title in Turin. 

No player has played more matches in 2022 than Tsitsipas (80), 21 on clay, 11 on grass and 48 on hard courts; he has won 59 of them and lost 21.

Should neither man win at the Pala Alpitour, Alcaraz will breathe a sigh of relief and earn his first year-end number one finish, having taken his place after winning the US Open in September.

Nadal has been drawn into the Green Group with Casper Ruud, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Taylor Fritz, while Tsitsipas will be in the Red Group alongside Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev and Novak Djokovic.

Djokovic can equal Federer record

One man surprisingly unable to end the year as number one is Djokovic, despite having done so on more occasions than anyone else in history (seven).

However, the 21-time grand slam champion can still make his mark in Italy.

Djokovic has had an up-and-down year, only playing in two of the four grand slams due to his vaccination status, though he was able to win Wimbledon for the seventh time, beating Nick Kyrgios in the final.

Should the Serbian go all the way and lift what would be his sixth ATP Finals title, he will go level with Federer for most victories since the tournament began in 1970.

Among the eight participating players in this year's tournament, Djokovic has won 87 per cent of his service games in 2022, the best percentage among these players and the sixth overall.

It would be quite the ending to the year for Djokovic, who finds himself in the unusual position of sitting eighth in the world rankings, and at the age of 35, who knows how many more appearances he will make at the event?

 

Strong field promises fireworks

As is the intent of the format, the ATP Finals should be a tightly-contested few days as the best men's players in the world come together.

Ruud will be looking to add to an already impressive season, having reached two grand slam finals and winning three tour-level titles, while Fritz is aiming to carry on the fine lineage of American players to have won the tournament.

Players from the United States have won the ATP finals 16 times, with Sampras and Ivan Lendl winning five of them each. It is the most by any country and 10 more than next best Switzerland (six, all Federer) and Germany (also six, three wins for Boris Becker, one for Michael Stich and two for last year's champion, Alexander Zverev).

Auger-Aliassime has had a strong end to the year, beating Djokovic at the Laver Cup before winning three titles in as many weeks in Florence, Antwerp and Basel.

Only John Isner (895) has recorded more aces in 2022 than Auger-Aliassime, who has registered 852 in total, averaging 10.9 per match.

"All the players who participate [at the ATP Finals], I have already faced them, I have beaten them," the Canadian recently said. "So for me, there's no reason why I can't show up to this tournament with the aim of winning it."

Medvedev was world number one as recently as September but enters this tournament in fifth, though he did win the Vienna ATP 500 event last month, while his first opponent in Turin, Rublev, enters with a 2022 record of 49-18, looking for his second straight 50-win season.

Whoever comes out on top at this year's ATP Finals, the race for supremacy in 2023 promises to be as delightfully chaotic.

Carlos Alcaraz will miss the ATP Finals and the Davis Cup Finals after his season was cut short by an abdominal injury.

The world number one suffered an internal oblique muscle tear during a Paris Masters quarter-final against Holger Rune on Friday.

Alcaraz retired early in a second-set tie-break after losing the opening set 6-3 in the French capital.

The US Open champion on Saturday revealed it will take him six weeks to recover from the injury, so Taylor Fritz will take his place in the ATP Finals in Turin next week.

Teenager Alcaraz will also be unavailable for Spain's bid to win the Davis Cup on home soil, with the prestigious event getting under way on November 22 in Malaga.

He posted on Instagram: "After my withdrawal yesterday and having been evaluated by my medical team, Dr Juanjo Lopez and Juanjo Moreno, unfortunately this is the result of my injury: an internal oblique muscle tear in the left abdominal wall with an estimated recovery time of six weeks.

"Unfortunately I won't make the ATP Finals or the Davis Cup Finals. It is tough and painful for me to miss these two events, which are so important to me, but all I can do is be positive and focus on my recovery. Thank you for the support!"

The 19-year-old became the youngest player to top the ATP rankings after winning his maiden major title at Flushing Meadows in September and ends a magnificent season with a record of 57 wins and 13 defeats.

He has won five ATP Tour titles in 2022, with Masters 1000 triumphs in Miami and Madrid along with his finest hour in New York.

Jannik Sinner and Marin Cilic were the two most notable first-round losers at the Paris Masters, where Taylor Fritz kept his slim ATP Finals hopes alive on Monday.

World number 12 Sinner, the 11th seed in the French capital this week, suffered a straight-sets loss to Marc-Andrea Huesler, as did 15th favourite Cilic against Lorenzo Musetti.

Ninth seed Fritz downed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 7-5 6-2, with Cameron Norrie and Frances Tiafoe also recording straight-sets victories against Miomir Kecmanovic and Lorenzo Sonego respectively.

Victory for Fritz kept the American in the hunt for qualifying for November's ATP Finals in Turin for the first time, needing to reach the final in Paris to overtake Felix Auger-Aliassime or Andrey Rublev.

"Right now I'm just focused on kind of playing myself into the tournament," said Fritz. "I feel like any time this year that I've won a couple of matches in a tournament, then I've done well.

"So I'll just try to focus on these early rounds. Turin is still in the picture, obviously, but there's not much else I really could have done.

"Felix has played really, really well, so he deserves it, but I am going to try to steal his spot this week for sure."

Home favourite Gilles Simon awaits Fritz in the second round at the ATP 1000 event after defeating Andy Murray 4-6 7-5 6-3.

Alexander Bublik and Mikael Ymer played out another three-set battle, with the former triumphing 6-1 6-7 (2-7) 6-4.

Richard Gasquet, Yoshihito Nishioka, Karen Khachanov, Maxime Cressy, Nikoloz Basilashvili and John Isner were the other first-round winners on the opening day in France.

Carlos Alcaraz reached the last-16 stage of the Swiss Indoors Basel by beating Jack Draper in three sets on Monday.

The number one seed lost the opening set but responded to take the following two and win 3-6 6-2 7-5.

Alcaraz dominated at the net, winning 30 of 39 points to edge out his opponent after more than two hours.

Elsewhere, at the Vienna Open, fourth seed Taylor Fritz overcame Yoshihito Nishioka in another three-set thriller.

Nishioka took the opener, and Fritz was staring down the barrel in a second-set tie-break before trailing by a break in the decider.

However, the American won the final five games to advance 6-7 (4-7) 7-6 (9-7) 6-3.

The comeback boosted Fritz's chances of making the ATP Finals, trailing Felix Auger-Aliassime by 315 points in the Race to Turin.

Third seed Andrey Rublev found life far easier as he beat Diego Schwartzman 6-4 6-1.

Taylor Fritz became the first American to win the Japan Open since Pete Sampras in 1996 after seeing off compatriot Frances Tiafoe with a victory that will take him into the top 10.

The 24-year-old beat Tiafoe in straight sets, though it was a tight affair as the match was decided via two tie-breaks, Fritz eventually triumphing 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-2) to clinch the ATP 500 event.

Nevertheless, Fritz looked the composed player for much of the contest as he created eight break chances to Tiafoe's three – though the latter managed to hang in for the most part.

The only breaks of serve came in back-to-back games early in the first set, with Tiafoe quickly hitting back before later holding off two set points to force a tie-break.

He would have been confident going into it after winning 13 successive singles tie-breaks prior to Sunday, but Fritz blew Tiafoe away in both, with the second coming at the end of a set in which neither player gave an inch.

A third tournament victory of 2022 ensures Fritz will break into the top 10 on Monday and provides a real boost to his hopes of qualifying for the end-of-season ATP Finals.

"Crazy, I don't even think it's set in just how fast the last four or five days have been," Fritz said afterwards.

"It's so crazy, and I couldn't have written it any better. It's exactly what I needed for the race [to Turin for the ATP Finals], for my ranking, to kind of put me in a good position for the end of the year, so it's amazing."

Fritz will be eighth in the world when the new rankings are released, making him the first American man to break the top 10 since Jack Sock did so in 2017.

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