Carlos Alcaraz vs. Alexander Zverev is usually an interesting matchup. It certainly was yet again at the BNP Paribas Open on Thursday evening–but not for anything related to actual tennis.
Alcaraz’s 6-3, 6-1 win was surprisingly lopsided, but it will be remembered for one specific reason: a bee invasion.
Yes, Thursday’s quarterfinal clash was delayed for almost two hours at 1-1 in the first because a horde of bees swarmed center court. Alcaraz even got stung before sprinting off the court. Mohamed Lahyani suffered the same fate after hilariously announcing, “Play is suspended due to bee invasion.”
Afterward, there was a lot of talk about bees and very little about tennis.
“For sure (it was) the most unusual match I have ever played in my career,” Alcaraz said. “I’ve never experienced something like that; I’ve never seen something like that. So I think I will remember that match because of that. I think everybody will remember this situation, and we found it as a funny thing. That’s for sure.
“I won the first point of the third game of the match, and I was ready to serve to the next point. I saw some bees around, but I thought it was just a few of them — just not too many. But I saw the sky and there was thousands, thousands flying, stuck in my hair, going to me. It was crazy. I tried to stay away from them, but it was impossible.
“I’m a little bit afraid of them. I had to stay safe, and yeah, I was running everywhere.”
Iga Swiatek was luckier, as she had already finished her match (Caroline Wozniacki retired early in their second set).
“I’m glad I’m not there anymore.”
Coco Gauff was also glad to avoid the chaos. The third-ranked American was playing at the same time on a bee-less Stadium 2 (she defeared Yue Yuan 6-4, 6-3 despite double-faulting 17 times).
“That was crazy,” Guaff commented. “I’ve never seen anything like that. Did Alcaraz actually get stung? Oh, he did. I heard that. I saw the video of him trying to run away. I said he wasn’t fast enough.
“That’s just one of those things…. You can’t defeat the bees. You know, he tried to swing his racquet, but there were just too many of them. I did feel bad for him. I’m glad he’s not allergic. That would have been tough.
“Yeah, that’s the craziest thing I’ve ever seen happen at a tennis court and hopefully it will never happen again–at least not to me!”
Daniil Medvedev and Holger Rune were next up on the main court and emerged unscathed thanks to the heroic efforts of the now-famous “beekeeper.” There were no bees to be found for the remainder of the night after Lance Davis expunged the insects, allowing Medvedev to complete a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Rune.
“I’m a bit scared of insects, to be honest,” Medvedev admitted. “Whenever there is a bee, everyone is, like, don’t move. As we saw with the guy, normally they don’t bite…. I usually sit like this for five seconds and then I’m like, ‘Wah, just get away.’ I would be probably sprinting out of the court.
“But, yeah, (it was a) crazy situation. I don’t think this (has) ever happened in tennis. Unbelievable. When I saw it on TV, I was like, ‘wow, okay, let’s see how it evolves.’ Then (after) 10 minutes I see Sascha coming in the locker room. Okay, it didn’t go well.
“Yeah, it was (a) crazy situation. I don’t think it can ever happen again. Unbelievable.”
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