First came the medical timeouts, one each for Jannik Sinner and Holger Rune with the temperature above 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) at the Australian Open. Then came the bizarre sight of a 20-minute delay because the net at Rod Laver Arena detached from the court after being hit by a big Sinner serve.

Jannik Sinner, the world No 1 and defending champion, looked to be heading out of the Australian Open until he was rescued by a controversial medical time-out.

The screw holding the net in place at the Australian Open’s main stadium got jarred loose during defending champion Jannik Sinner’s fourth-round victory against Holger Rune, delaying play for about 20 minutes early in the fourth set.