Tennis fans and commentators were left in disbelief at the Miami Open as a match was delayed due to a bizarre reason: no one could figure out how to turn on the stadium lights.
As the sky darkened over Florida before an expected rain, the match between Gael Monfils and Sebastian Korda on the main court of the Hard Rock Stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins, was affected.
Monfils and Korda agreed that it was becoming too dark to continue their round of 16 match.
Initially, it seemed like a simple fix to turn on the floodlights.
However, it resulted in a 13-minute delay during the deciding third set as tournament staff struggled to get the lights working.
The umpire, Mohamed Lahyani, was seen trying to understand the situation using his walkie-talkie.
After a nine-minute pause, Lahyani announced that it would take another five minutes for the lights to be activated.
Sky Sports Tennis commentator Jonathan Overend described the situation as “really embarrassing” and later exclaimed “it`s a joke” as the delay continued.
Tennis fans on social media also expressed their anger at the Miami Open for the embarrassing mistake.
One fan commented on the absurdity of a light delay at 1 pm, questioning the tournament`s organization. Another criticized the delay as inefficient and detrimental to the match flow. A final comment mocked the Miami Open for failing to perform basic tasks like turning on a light switch, following previous issues with court changes.
Adding to the delay, Korda was allowed a toilet break while the lights were being sorted. Ironically, the lights finally came on while he was off-court, forcing Monfils to wait for his return before play could resume.
Unfortunately, only five more games were played before rain began to fall. Korda, whose sister is golf world No. 1 Nelly Korda, managed to break serve to lead 4-3 but then required a medical timeout for his right wrist.
As Korda received treatment, the rain intensified, leading to another suspension of play.
Despite the rain, Lahyani deemed the court playable, and the match continued briefly.
However, on the first point of the 4-3 game, Monfils slipped on the increasingly wet surface, making it clear that another break was necessary as the rain worsened.
As players left the court for shelter, Korda displayed good sportsmanship by agreeing to replay the point due to the dangerous conditions.
