CARLOS ALCARAZ’S showdown with Alexander Zverev was suspended… after he was stung during a bee invasion.
The Spanish sensation, 20, took on the German at Indian Wells aiming to book his spot in the semi-finals.
Carlos Alcaraz was stung by a bee during a horrific invasion
TennisTVThere were thousands of bees inside the main stadium at Indian Wells[/caption]
EPAThe bees swooped on to the spider cam[/caption]
TennisTVThe camera was literally covered in the insects[/caption]
But at 1-1 in the first set, unbelievable scenes saw a sudden influx of bees descend upon the court.
Thousands of the flying stingers swooped around Alcaraz as he was preparing to serve.
The Wimbledon champion desperately swatted them away in a panic before rushing away to put a towel to his head for protection.
However, his manager then confirmed Alcaraz had been stung on the forehead amid the drama.
Then umpire Mohamed Lahyani – who was spotted frantically avoiding the bees – announced over the microphone: “Ladies and gentlemen, we have bees – play paused for a while.
“Play cannot continue, pause for a while.”
The distressing scenes then saw Alcaraz take shelter by running off court to safety and back to the changing rooms.
Zverev and Lahyani followed suit – with some fans also leaving the stadium.
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Stunned commentators could barely comprehend what was happening.
The TV cameras then showed the spider cam which was absolutely covered in the insects.
The operator then lifted the camera up as an attempt to take the bees away from the stadium.
However, it is understood a number of tennis spectators were stung amid the invasion.
During the stoppage, Sky Sports confirmed a beekeeper was on the way to the site while a fire engine also appeared.
Fans unsurprisingly swooped to social media to give their reactions.
Judy Murray said: “You cannot bee serious….. play suspended on the Stadium court at Indian Wells after a bee invasion. That’s got to be a first.”
Another wrote: “Never seen anything like that before!”
A third added: “Everyone needs to BEE careful.”
A fourth quipped: “What a buzzing atmosphere.”
A fifth joked: “How beezarre.”
And a final user simply commented: “Tennis, what a sport.”
GettyAlcaraz covered his head with his top[/caption]
BEIN SportsBoth he and Lahyani frantically tried to protect themselves[/caption]
BEIN SportsAlcaraz ran off court to safety[/caption]
TennisTVUmpire Mohamed Lahyani desperately took cover[/caption]
TennisTVTV producers put up this incredible memo for fans tuning in[/caption]
Sky SportsThe players went back to the changing room during the stoppage[/caption]