NOVAK DJOKOVIC threw up on court during his win over Yannick Hanfmann at the Shanghai Masters.
Djokovic complained about the “brutal” conditions after a near-three-hour battle in 30-degree heat and 80 per cent humidity.
The Serb, 38, was forced to dig deep after losing the first set to Hanfmann – a qualifier ranked 150th in the world.
And it was clear that Djokovic was pushed to his physical limits.
At one point, the 24-time Grand Slam winner bent over at the back of the court, vomited, and then returned to the baseline.
After that, he opened a bin at the side of the court and threw up in it.
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Some spectators even filmed the surreal scenes as Djokovic grappled with the intense heat.
The veteran completed his comeback to win 4-6 7-5 6-3, setting up a Round of 16 clash with Jaume Munar.
Djokovic said: “It’s the same for every player out on the court, but it’s brutal.
“It’s brutal when you have over 80 per cent humidity day after day, particularly for the guys when they’re playing during the day with heat, with sun, it’s even more brutal.
“For me, biologically it’s a bit more challenging to deal with it. But I had to really weather the storm today.”
Djokovic’s grim ordeal came on the same day Jannik Sinner was forced to pull out of the tournament.
The world No2 suffered extreme cramp in the deciding set of his match against Tallon Griekspoor and couldn’t continue.
Sinner had not lost a hard court match to a player other than Carlos Alcaraz for over a year, and he arrived in China as the defending champion.
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