Grigor Dimitrov defeated Jacob Fearnley at the Madrid Open to advance to the Round of 16. The match, played at the Caja Mágica, was interrupted Monday by a widespread power outage that affected Spain and Portugal.
The third-round contest between the veteran Grigor Dimitrov and the qualifier Jacob Fearnley was suspended with Dimitrov leading 6-4, 5-4. Play halted as the city and country came to a standstill, forcing the suspension of matches for the day.
Power was restored at the tournament venue around 8 am Tuesday, allowing play to resume later in the day. Grigor Dimitrov and Jacob Fearnley returned to the court to finish their match.
The Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov secured the win, closing out the match with a 6-4, 7-6 (3) score.
With the victory, Grigor Dimitrov moves into the Round of 16 where he will face Gabriel Diallo. This will be the first career meeting between Dimitrov and Diallo.
Other players at the tournament also experienced disruptions from the power outage, including Frances Tiafoe and Madison Keys, who commented on the unusual circumstances. Jacob Fearnley reflected on the challenge of the unexpected delay during his match against Grigor Dimitrov.
"I was pleased with the way I handled the situation," Fearnley said. "Maybe I played that game a little bit too much in my head, and didn’t really think about if I was actually capable of winning the second set."
