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Jannik Sinner's battle against the scorching Melbourne heat was exposed during his Australian Open third-round clash with Eliot Spizzirri. Play across all outdoor courts was halted on Saturday as temperatures soared to 38 degrees celsius, with the world number two visibly wilting against his American opponent.

The Italian, 24, eventually overcame the world number 85's challenge, recovering from dropping the opening set to triumph 4-6 6-3 6-4 6-4 and secure his spot in the last 16, where compatriot Luciano Darderi awaits.

But Sinner's discomfort in the blistering conditions was plain to see as cameras caught him seeking refuge in the shade, stretching out, and muttering: "I don't know what to do. I'm f****d," moments before officials intervened with the Italian trailing 3-1 in the third set.

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Spizzirri looked understandably gutted as his golden opportunity slipped away, the four-time Grand Slam champion clearly struggling as they were ushered off court to allow the roof to be shut.

Tournament officials activated the extreme heat protocol across all outdoor courts once the heat scale reached its maximum level of five. This measurement takes into account radiant heat, air temperature in shaded areas, relative humidity and wind speed.

When these rules kick in, matches are paused at the conclusion of an even game to enable the roof closure and allow air circulation to bring temperatures down on court.

The heat fell to roughly 26C during the fourth set of Sinner's victory, with the Italian appearing more at ease as he hit his stride to overcome Spizzirri.

Organisers at the tournament shifted play forward by 30 minutes on Saturday, bracing for the scorching conditions descending upon the Australian Open.

After securing his spot in the round of 16, Sinner admitted: "I struggled physically a bit today. We saw this.

"I got lucky with the heat rule, they closed the roof. I took my time, and as the time passed, I felt better and better, and very happy about this performance.

"Looking back, in every big tournament, I've had some really tough matches. Hopefully this can give me some positives for the next round, starting with a good mentality again, and then we see what's coming.

"But I'm really, really happy. Thanks for the support, it helped me a lot today, thank you.

"[I struggled with] many things. It started with the leg, then it got into the arm, so I was cramping a bit all over.

"This is sport, I know this is an area where I need to improve, which is a positive thing. We try to work every day, I have a great team behind me, pushing me."