Tennis fans watched a frightening scene unfold in China after Swedish star Elias Ymer suddenly collapsed twice during a match and was surrounded by officials, medics and ball kids holding up towels.
Ymer, the No. 2 seed at the Zhangjiagang Challenger, was battling Hsu Yu-hsiou on Tuesday when his body appeared to give out during a grueling second set.
The 30-year-old Swede had already lost the opening set in a tiebreak but was fighting to force a deciding third set. He was serving at 5-3 when the match took a scary turn.
During an exhausting service game packed with deuces, break points and missed set points, Hsu sent a lob over Ymer’s head.
Ymer turned and began walking back toward the baseline — then suddenly dropped to the court.
The chair umpire immediately rushed over as Hsu brought his opponent an ice towel.
Ymer managed to get back to his feet, but the relief didn’t last long.
Moments later, he collapsed again.
More officials raced onto the court as medical personnel were summoned. Ball kids gathered around the fallen player and held up towels to shield him while he was treated.
The urgency could be heard over the umpire’s radio.
“Call the doctors and physios,” the official said, adding that Ymer was “still conscious.”
Medics eventually reached the court, and a three-minute medical timeout was called.
About nine minutes after his first collapse, Ymer remarkably got back on his feet.
He stumbled toward his bench before attempting to continue the match.
But it quickly became clear that something was still seriously wrong.
Hsu eventually broke Ymer’s serve, bringing an extraordinary ninth game of the second set to an end roughly 26 minutes after it began, including the lengthy medical stoppage.
Ymer repeatedly doubled over between points and appeared to be struggling just to stay upright.
Hsu then held serve to make it 5-5.
Ymer could barely move along the baseline, allowing several balls to sail past him without making a serious attempt to chase them down.
When it was his turn to serve again, he struggled to generate any power.
Finally, trailing 0-15 at 5-5, Ymer decided he could not continue.
Even getting to the net proved difficult.
Hsu jumped over the net to help his stricken opponent make his way toward the bench, while the chair umpire also came down to assist him.
“Ladies and gentlemen, unfortunately Mr. Ymer has to retire due to injury,” the umpire announced before awarding the match to Hsu.
Ymer appeared to be suffering from severe cramping or a possible leg problem, though the exact nature of the issue was not immediately clear.
Medical staff returned to his side after the retirement, and a rolling stretcher was brought next to the court.
The match broadcast ended before viewers could see whether Ymer ultimately needed to be taken away on the stretcher, bringing a disturbing end to an already alarming afternoon on the court.
Discover more from
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.