The 2024 tennis season hasn’t been short of surprises. While much of the action has happened on the court, some off-court events have caught the eyes of the tennis world. Recently, one such incident surprised one and all, including a tennis umpire. Holger Rune was playing in his round of 16 match at the BMW Open in Munich. However, shortly after he stepped onto the court, he was taken by surprise.

The weather has been very unpredictable in the European swing of the tennis season. Last week, there were many interruptions at the Monte Carlo Masters due to untimely rains. A similar incident took place this week in Germany.

Holger Rune gets a chilling reality check

In what was his first match at the tournament, Holger Rune stepped out with all guns blazing. He was up against Daniel Elahi Galan of Columbia. However, with just two points played in that match, it suddenly started snowing. The incident was completely against the run of play, leaving everyone in surprise.

The chair umpire in that match, Adel Nour, was also taken aback by the incident. He said, “I’ve never seen this. Only in Munich.” Subsequently, he announced the suspension of the match as conditions became more severe. Nonetheless, the players remained in good spirits as the court witnessed heavy snowfall.

While everyone had their umbrellas and raincoats out, the chair umpire stepped onto the court for an inspection. He discussed the situation with other officials on a walkie-talkie and announced a pause in play as the conditions became unplayable.

The match resumed sometime later and Rune took charge of the proceedings. He is currently up a break in the first set, leading 4-3. With the players already criticizing the poor scheduling of the matches, the poor weather conditions have further messed up the scheduling. Last week, Rune strongly criticized the ATP following his Monte Carlo defeat.

Rune not happy with his match schedules

At the ATP 1000 Monte Carlo Masters, the Danish sensation bowed out of the tournament in the quarterfinals, losing against Jannik Sinner. Subsequently, he took to Twitter to slam the ATP for poor scheduling of his matches.

Rune said, “Meaning what @atptour…..? Not that you gave me the best conditions in the first place having to play 2 matches the day before ending late, leaving almost no recovery time.”

It remains to be seen how Rune can cope up in Munich, with the weather predicted to play a spoilsport during the entire week. Nonetheless, he is one of the favorites to win the tournament and will give his all to lift the trophy in Munich.