Bees caused a nearly two-hour delay in the quarterfinal match between Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev at Indian Wells. With the match tied at 1-1 during the first set, bees buzzed around Carlos Alcaraz. He swatted at them before running off the court. A swarm of bees landed on an overhead spider camera that moves above the court.
The Bee Guy
LOVE a good bee delay https://t.co/LCpROTdi7W
— PFT Commenter (@PFTCommenter) March 14, 2024
A very brave and courageous man went to where the bees were clustered and used a vacuum to get them off. What is amazing about this and even frightening coming from guys who are very scared of bees like me and Alcaraz is that the man had no protective equipment. He just went up there and vacuumed the bees off the camera like it was nobody’s business.
Our hero has arrived.
This man is taking on the bees in the Alcaraz Zverev delay without fear.
No bee keeping suit.
Not even gloves.
We salute you. ??
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) March 14, 2024
The players left the court during the delay. After the players returned, the bees also did. The chair umpire informed Alcaraz and Zverev that there was still some bees around. The “Bee Guy” as I’ll call him, returned to the court with a spray bottle and received a great reception from the crowd. He soaked the walls around the court and went through the seats spraying for bees.
It’s time to BEE the main character… ?
Welcome, legend, icon, Lance Davis ??@BNPPARIBASOPEN | #IndianWells pic.twitter.com/sSyRC9Q0Qh
— ATP Tour (@atptour) March 15, 2024
Fans were even taking selfies with the Bee Guy Lance Davis. He has become a tennis celebrity and a very unlikely one at that. Alcaraz and Zverev were laughing down on the court as this was happening.
After the bee delay, Alcaraz would break quickly. The Spaniard and second-ranked player in the world is seemingly not scared of anything on the court, except for bees. Alcaraz was worried about the bees coming back after the players returned to play.
Carlos Alcaraz vs. Bees ?
Advantage, bees. #TennisParadise pic.twitter.com/2fLBWHKYyi
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) March 14, 2024
An ATP Tour supervisor encouraged Alcaraz to keep playing. At the time of this writing, there has not been another bee incident at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. The work of the bee guy Lance Davis has done well and kept the bees at bay.
Background on Lance, the bee guy who saved the day in Indian Wells
From the tourament: pic.twitter.com/Q8sZ0C0CSr
— Christopher Clarey ?? ?? ?? (@christophclarey) March 15, 2024
Obsessed with the Indian Wells bee guy who appears to be Lance Davis, President of Killer Bee Live Removal pic.twitter.com/YWRrMoBcNj
— Matt Roberts (@MattRobertsTTP) March 14, 2024
Players have left the court during a rain delay, but a bee delay sure has to be rare.
During the post-match studio coverage on Tennis Channel, host Steve Weissman referenced the earlier bee incident,
“We are safe in here. There are no bees.”
Bee Delays At Other Sporting Events
Weirdly enough, this is not the first time there has been a bee delay at a sporting event. In 2019, an MLB game between the Miami Marlins and San Diego Padres in San Diego was disrupted by a swarm of bees landing on a microphone attached near the Padres’ dugout. Then, in 2023, there was a swarm of honeybees in left field during a game between the Colorado Rockies and and Baltimore Orioles.
The bees didn’t end up being a huge problem for Carlos Alcaraz ultimately as he beat German Alexander Zverev 6-3, 6-1.
This is Carlos Alcaraz’s 10th straight win at Indian Wells. Not even the bees could stop him.
Carlos Alcaraz will play third-ranked Italian hotshot Jannik Sinner in the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells semifinals.
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Cooper Sherman is an avid NFL fan and enjoys watching and covering it the most. The NFL is king. He previously wrote and was a podcaster for the online publications Pro Sports Fanatics and Jersey Column. He is also an NBA fan and watches it occasionally, more when the NFL season ends. Tennis is also an underrated sport to watch. His teams are the Patriots and Celtics, as tough as it is to be a Patriots fan right now. He is optimistic that Jerod Mayo will turn this team in the right direction! Follow him on Instagram and Threads @coopstershermy456, and X/Twitter @justcoopthings.
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