Ekaterina Alexandrova collapsed on court and retired from her first-round match against 16-year-old Kristina Liutova at the Memphis Classic, with heat-related illness forcing the tournament’s No 1 seed to stop in temperatures reported to be around 97F (36C) in Tennessee.
Alexandrova, ranked world No 19, was two points away from defeat when the incident occurred in a gruelling match that lasted more than three hours. Liutova, also Russian, was making her WTA Tour debut and was left in tears after being told her opponent could not continue.
How the match ended: collapse, treatment and retirement
The match had reached a decisive stage with Liutova leading 7-6 (2), 4-6, 5-4. As Alexandrova served while trying to stay in the contest, she began to struggle and initially received a time violation.
During the next point, Alexandrova fell to the ground and required treatment on court. She was able to stand briefly, but then left the arena in a wheelchair, ending the match by retirement with Liutova on the brink of victory.
The incident underlined the physical demands of playing in extreme heat, particularly in a long, tight match that had already stretched beyond three hours before the final games of the third set.
Liutova’s debut overshadowed
Liutova’s first WTA Tour appearance was set to be a breakthrough moment, having taken the opening set in a tiebreak and then responded after dropping the second. But the conclusion was dominated by concern for Alexandrova’s condition and the abrupt end to the contest.
Another seed falls in Memphis
Memphis also saw the tournament’s second seed, McCartney Kessler, eliminated in the first round. Kessler lost 6-4, 6-1 to Mexico’s Renata Zarazua after leading 4-2 in the first set. From that point, Kessler dropped four straight games and was unable to recover.
Kessler is still seeking her first WTA title of the year after winning two events in 2025, and her early exit added to a difficult opening round for seeded players at the new event.
Why the Memphis heat is already a talking point
Alexandrova’s withdrawal raised questions over the decision to add Memphis as a summer stop on the WTA Tour. The Memphis Classic is a new WTA 250 event that has replaced Cleveland on the schedule this year, and it is staged in late July and early August, when average temperatures in Tennessee are around 83F (29C).
With the match played in conditions reported to be significantly hotter than that average, the opening round provided an immediate example of the challenges players can face during the peak summer window.
Results elsewhere: Washington first-round updates
At the Mubadala DC Open in Washington, Venus Williams was beaten in the first round on Tuesday, losing 6-3, 6-3 to Austria’s Anastasia Potapova.
In another notable result, the tournament’s fifth seed, Liudmila Samsonova of Russia, defeated Daria Kasatkina 6-4, 6-1, converting four of her six break-point chances.
Katie Boulter won the first set against Ashlyn Kreuger but went on to lose 3-6, 6-2, 6-2.
Poland’s Magda Linette beat Ann Li 6-4, 6-3 to set up a second-round match against Jessica Pegula. Other first-round winners on Tuesday included Alexandra Eala of the Philippines, Uzbekistan’s Polina Kudermetova and China’s Xinyu Wang.
