Carlos Alcaraz’s latest match at Indian Wells was suspended for almost two hours as thousands of bees swarmed the court.
There was a buzz in the stadium as world tennis no 2 Carlos Alcaraz took on Alexander Zverev in the tournament’s quarter-finals in California – and in the second game it became clear the noise was coming from a swarm of bees hovering around a camera on the court.
Spectators watched as they began filling the rest of the court, with one appearing to sting Alcaraz on his head.
The umpire, also surrounded by the insects, shook some bees off, sat at the edge of his seat and smiled as he said: “Play cannot continue.”
Alcaraz, who won Wimbledon for the first time last year, could be seen resorting to wildly swinging his racket at the bees as he ran off the court, the umpire and staff swiftly following the Spanish player down the tunnel.
It was almost two hours before play resumed, after some bees were removed by a local beekeeper.
The bees couldn’t stop Alcaraz winning any more than his German opponent could, with the 20-year-old breezing through to the next round with a 6-3 6-1 win once play resumed.
Despite the emphatic win, the young star admitted the match would be remembered more so for its bizarre start.
“It was strange. I’ve never seen something like that on a tennis court,” Alcaraz said after the match.
“When we ran out of the court, we were watching the bee invasion on the TV and we laughed a lot about it.
“It was funny for me. It’s going to be remembered for that, not for the tennis.”
Alcaraz will face world no 3 Jannik Sinner in the semi-final on Saturday, with Daniil Medvedev taking on Tommy Paul for the other final spot.
Asked about the bee drama, Medvedev admitted he was glad he wasn’t one of the players on the court during the infestation.
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The freak occurrence did nothing to stunt Alcaraz’s focus, and the two-time grand slam winner said he was “really, really happy with the level that I’m playing”.
“The way I’m using the court, I think, is really important for me, for my game,” he added.
“The opponent doesn’t know what’s going to come next. Probably I’m going to return inside the court, in the deep parts. It’s kind of confusing for them. That’s my style, that’s my game.”
