Paris: An unusual inicdent happened at Roland Garros 2021 on Thursday. Novak Djokovic and Matteo Berrettini Quarter final had to be stopped as the spectators did not leave the stadium even after the night curfew. Both players waited inside the Philippe-Chatrier Arena for more than 30 minutes as the fans did not budge to the order.
As per the local rules in Paris, no crowd could be inside the stadium post 11 pm Paris time. The restrictions are in place considering the Covid-19 situation.
The match was in the 4th set with Djokovic having a 3-2 advantage over the Itaian when the clock ticked 11 pm in Paris. But as the match was not finished, the spectators did not agree to leave the stadium. Thus, the umpires had to step in and the match had to be suspended untill all the spectators had left the stadium.
The Stadium looked something like this after th fans exited the stands:
The match continued after almost a 30-minute break, but without any spectators. Such an inicdent might have happened for the first time in the history of grandslams. Players took a breather and had a small practice session before begining proceedings.
Eventually, Djokovic won the match by beating Berrettini in the fourth set 7-5. It was a spirited performance by the world number 9, but he fell short in front of the brilliance of Novak Djokovic.
Djokovic registered his 11th Roland Garros Quarter final victory. Now, we will have a main-event semi-final between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal!