WORLD number two Daniil Medvedev gave a frank assessment of the stifling conditions for tennis in Tokyo yesterday when the visibly upset Russian told the umpire he could finish his match but wanted to know who will take responsibility if he died.

“I can finish the match but I can die,” Medvedev said. “If I die, are you going to be responsible?”

Afterward, Medvedev said he felt “darkness” in his eyes.

“I didn’t know what to do to feel better,” the Russian player added. “I was ready to just fall down on the court.”

Somehow, Medvedev pulled out a 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 win over Fabio Fognini of Italy to reach the quarterfinals at the Tokyo Olympics.

Spanish player Paula Badosa was less fortunate. She left the court in a wheelchair after retiring from her quarterfinal match against Marketa Vondrousova because of heatstroke.

Vondrousova, the Czech player who eliminated Naomi Osaka a day earlier, had won the first set 6-3. She’s now in the semifinals and into the medal rounds.

After some rain a day earlier, the temperature rose to 31 degrees Celsius but the heat index made it feel like 37 degrees Celsius.

The problems the players faced raised questions over why organizers did not grant requests earlier in the tournament from Medvedev and other players — including top-ranked Novak Djokovic — to move all of the tennis matches at the Games to the evening.

Organizers said immediately after Medvedev’s win that they were “considering” playing the matches later.

Medvedev received medical treatment and had his chest massaged while leading 5-2 in the opening set but then held his serve in the next game to close it out. He then took another medical timeout while trailing 4-3 in the second.

“I felt like my diaphragm has blocked,” Medvedev said. “I couldn’t breathe properly. It was the most humid day we had so far — maybe the hottest.”

With so much suffering, Medvedev took his time between points, which drew protests from Fognini.

Both players were allowed to leave the court for 10 minutes between the second and third sets with an extreme heat rule in effect.

Medvedev said he took a “cold, freezing shower” during the break but that the sharp change in temperature put his body into shock and caused him to cramp.

After holding for a 5-2 lead in the third, Medvedev received yet more medical treatment when a trainer came out onto the court and massaged his left arm and thigh.

Fognini slammed his racket onto the court in disgust when the match was over, then picked the racket up and placed it in a court-side trash can.

Medvedev — if he’s up to it — will next face sixth-seeded Pablo Carreno Busta of Spain for a spot in the medal rounds. Carreno Busta beat Dominik Koepfer of Germany 7-6 (7), 6-3.

Also advancing was Kei Nishikori of Japan, who beat Ilya Ivashka of Belarus 7-6 (7), 6-0. (SD-Agencies)