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The BNP Paribas Open, commonly known as Indian Wells, was in uproar on Thursday after a swarm of bees caused a long delay to the quarter-final showdown between Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev.
The score was tied 1-1 in the first set when Alcaraz started punching the air. At first, it wasn’t very clear what was happening, but then chair umpire Mohamed Lahyani was forced to stop the proceedings when more bees arrived on the court in California.
World No. 2 Alcaraz was seen heading straight to the locker room before the referee told the crowd there was a “bee invasion.” The video appeared to show Lahyani being stung in the head shortly after his announcement.
After attempts to restart the match were temporarily squandered by the presence of even more bees, play finally began after an hour and 48 minutes delay, with Alcaraz eventually winning 6-3, 6-1.
“Without a doubt, it is the most unusual game I have played in my career,” the Spaniard told reporters. “He had never experienced anything like that. I’ve never seen anything like it.
“I think I will remember that game for that. I think everyone will remember this situation and we found it funny, that’s for sure.”
But although Alcaraz won the match, it was beekeeper Lance Davis who really saved the day.
After the players retreated to the locker room, Davis ran onto the court to corral the flying insects that had begun to swarm in one of the court’s upper chambers.
Organizers were able to maneuver the camera toward the stands where Davis and his vacuum cleaner found the bees.
The beekeeper transferred the insects to a cage to transport them out of the stadium and take them to one of his personal hives, according to reports. ATPTour.com.
“This time of year is swarm season, so they go everywhere,” Davis told ATPTour.com. “And I’m happy to be there for them, so they can’t have any incidents.”
Wearing an eye-catching pair of all-black ski sunglasses, the ‘Killer Bee Live Removal’ president turned into a instant success on social media as he high-fived spectators and posed for selfies during his mission to save the match.
“Not all heroes wear capes”, Alcaraz wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, responding to a video of Davis in action.
Davis, who told ATPTour.com that he does not have social media on his phone, also went viral for his brave approach to the problem.
American actor Ben Stiller was one of many impressed with his work and wrote in x: “Bee Invasion Guy is great. Brave.”
After his unusual victory, Alcaraz will now face Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals of the tournament.
At the very least, he will hope to be able to continue playing tennis without being harassed by another bee invasion.
“I’m not going to lie, I’m a little afraid of bees,” the two-time Grand Slam winner accepted after his victory.