The current title holder, Carlos Alcaraz, successfully overcame a group of bees to secure a victory against sixth seed Alexander Zverev with a score of 6-3, 6-1. The delay in their BNP Paribas Open quarter-final match on Thursday night lasted nearly two hours.
At a score of 1-1 in the first set, during a match in Indian Wells, a swarm of bees entered the court, stands, and covered cameras. The umpire, Mohamed Lahyani, halted the game while players escaped into the tunnel, trying to ward off the bees.
During a break in play, a man tried to remove a group of bees from the camera equipment using a vacuum.
Only 19 minutes into the match, play was interrupted by a swarm of bees. It took one hour and 48 minutes for the match to resume. Alcaraz secured the win by breaking the German opponent for the fourth time, bringing his winning streak in the Californian desert to 10 matches.
“It was unusual, I have never encountered such a sight at a tennis match,” Alcaraz remarked about the bees. “I must admit, I was a bit fearful of them. However, once the match resumed, I was able to keep my distance from the bees and focus on the tasks at hand.”
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Alcaraz is set to play against Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals, as the Italian player defeated Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 6-3, extending his impressive 16-match winning streak this year.
Despite the windy and cool conditions, the top player on the men’s tour, Sinner, remained in control throughout the match. His opponent struggled with unforced errors, while Sinner only faced one break chance. “The wind was really strong in the morning,” Sinner commented after the match. “It made the first set difficult to manage.”
I was highly mindful of my every move because he has great potential. I am pleased to have made it to the semi-finals last year and to have the opportunity to do so again this year in one of the top tournaments of the year.
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Women’s world No 1 Iga Swiatek said she was glad she was not on the court when the bees flew in. “That’s crazy,” she said in her post-match press conference. “There was nothing like [that] 30 minutes ago. I would run away!”
Swiatek advanced to the semi-finals after Caroline Wozniacki, a former world No 1 from Denmark, retired in the second set of their quarter-final. Wozniacki, who was victorious at Indian Wells in 2011, had a 4-1 lead in the first set before Swiatek staged a comeback to win 6-4.
Wozniacki paused the game due to a foot problem during the break between sets and later withdrew from the match after playing just one more game in the second set. Swiatek, aiming for her second Indian Wells title in three years, claimed victory with a score of 6-4, 1-0.
“I hold immense admiration for her,” stated Swiatek. “I am disappointed that it ended in that manner, but I wish her a speedy recovery and hope she will be prepared for Miami.” Swiatek will face Ukraine’s No. 31 seed Marta Kostyuk in the semi-finals, defeating No. 28 seed Anastasia Potapova of Russia in a swift 68 minutes with a score of 6-0, 7-5.
Source: theguardian.com
