Wimbledon qualifying was brought to a standstill on Wednesday afternoon after a power failure knocked out the electronic line-calling system at the Roehampton venue.
Matches at the Lawn Tennis Association’s National Tennis Centre ground to a halt at 12.15pm, with players forced to wait for just over an hour before returning to court.
BBC commentator Annabel Croft noted the “swelteringly hot” conditions had caused “a few power issues”.
The qualifying event is currently subject to an extreme heat weather warning, with organisers prioritising the wellbeing of competitors and spectators.
While the scorching temperatures are believed to have contributed to the outage, officials have confirmed a thorough investigation will follow.
Providing an update on the power outage, a spokesman for the All England Club confirmed the situation had been resolved.
They said: “There was a temporary loss of power to part of our qualifying venue, which meant that the electronic line calling system could not function.
“Power has now been restored, and play has resumed.”
Wimbledon had been hit with a power outage during qualifying
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Dan Evans, the British veteran who had hoped this year’s Championships would mark his final Wimbledon appearance before hanging up his racket, found himself among those caught up in the disruption.
The delay proved costly for Evans, who was unable to recover when action resumed.
Tristan Schoolkate, seeded 28th in qualifying, capitalised on the restart to secure a comprehensive straight-sets victory.
The Australian dispatched Evans 7-5, 6-0 in their second-round encounter, ending the Briton’s dreams of one last appearance at the grass-court Grand Slam through the qualifying route.
Dan Evans is out of Wimbledon qualifying
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Speaking to the BBC after his victory, Schoolkate praised Evans for the career he has had.
He said: “It’s not an easy match-up. Dan is a phenomenal player and I wish him all the best for after his career.
“I’ve looked up to guys like him for a long time. So much of the tennis today is the same old, same old.
“Watching him, the way he jinks it around, his slices are amazing, he’s a great competitor, and so many young kids can learn a lot from Dan.”
Evans lost to Schoolkate 7-5, 6-0
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Commenting on the conditions, Schoolkate said: “It is not usually this hot in London, so it was unexpected – it usually rains a bit.
“I don’t think it was a heat thing, maybe it had something to do with the electronics and all that, but you get time to gather your thoughts.
“It was a bit strange, but I was just glad I came out of the gates pretty hot there.”
