Play at the ongoing Madrid Open tennis tournament has been suspended following a massive power outage across Spain as confirmed by the country’s electricity grid operator Red Electrica as it works to restore electricity supply.
Britain’s Jacob Fearnley was among those forced off court during his third-round clash against Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov. Play was suspended on the main court as Fearnley was about to serve when he was 6-4, 5-4 down.
The power outage has seen the electronic line-calling system and scoreboards stop working. After a brief delay, the umpire announced play would restart, with him making line calls in place of the system. However, the umpire led the players back to the locker room after further discussions with the players.
There have been reports of traffic lights not working and the underground railway system being evacuated in Madrid, as well as a similar power outage in neighbouring Portugal.