Devastating power outages have caused significant disruption at the Madrid Open, leading to the suspension of play.
Numerous major cities across both Spain and Portugal are currently experiencing blackouts.
The widespread outages have also impacted sports, specifically the Madrid Open, where British tennis player Jacob Fearnley`s match against Grigor Dimitrov was halted after a loud bang was heard between points.
At the time of the suspension, Fearnley was a set behind and trailing 5-4 in the second set.
The umpire promptly stopped the match when the scoreboard and the electronic line calling system failed.
Initially, both players and spectators seemed confused. The umpire, Adel Nour, even made an extraordinary offer to judge line calls himself from his chair courtside.
However, Fearnley then pointed out that the spider camera suspended above the net was stuck and posed a risk of being hit.
The umpire subsequently announced a power outage, and the players left the court for the locker rooms.
Play at the Masters 1000 tournament was suspended for at least two hours, with no immediate indication of when it might resume.
In a strange turn, the main stadium`s DJ managed to connect to the sound system and began playing music.
This prompted fans, who were unable to buy refreshments, to return to their seats, only to find it was a false alarm regarding the resumption of play.
The impact extends far beyond the tennis tournament, as entire cities across both Spain and Portugal have lost electricity and internet access.
This has brought airports and train systems in both countries to a standstill, creating widespread chaos.
Severe traffic congestion is reported in areas like Madrid due to non-functional traffic lights, with emergency personnel deployed to manage the disruption.
Specific impacts include Barajas Airport in Madrid remaining without power, Valencia`s metro network being shut down for the day, and disruptions affecting Seville, Barcelona, and Pamplona.
Data from Spain`s national electricity grid operator reveals a dramatic drop in power supply within seconds.
Spain`s national grid operator, Red Electrica, has announced it is working urgently to restore the power supply.
They attributed the outage to a system failure affecting the entire Iberian Peninsula.
Fearnley, a 23-year-old from Edinburgh, has been nicknamed the “next Andy Murray” following his impressive climb in the rankings over the past year.
In 2024, the rising star set a record by climbing 547 ranking places within 12 months.
Fearnley is currently ranked world No. 68 and reached the third round of the Australian Open earlier this year, notably defeating former Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios.
