Chaos Hits Cincinnati Open as Madison Keys and Jannik Sinner Play Through Major Disruption

In the heart of the clay court season at the Madrid Open, a sudden national power outage ripped through the city, halting play and plunging the tournament into chaos. The cutting-edge electronic line-calling system, which had banished line judges, flickered out, and the scoreboards fell silent. Among those forced off the court was Britain’s Jacob Fearnley, caught in the blackout’s unforgiving grip. The blackout’s shadow stretched beyond tennis, darkening traffic lights and forcing Madrid’s underground to evacuate, a haunting echo of a similar outage in Portugal. Now, barely a heartbeat later, chaos erupted again, this time at the Cincinnati Open, where Madison Keys and Jannik Sinner battled through fierce disruption.

Play roared back to life at the Cincinnati Open after a tense 75-minute blackout on Monday, plunging the tournament into unexpected turmoil. The power went out at 5:25 p.m., shortly after Taylor Fritz won the first set against Lorenzo Sonego 7-6 (4) on center court. Stefanos Tsitsipas maintained a strong lead against Benjamin Bonzi, 7-6 (4), 2-5, on Court 3 before play was suspended.

The tournament confirmed the suspension at 5:57 p.m. local time, barely an hour after broadcast feeds mysteriously cut out at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio. Initially, play staggered on during the early moments of the outage, but soon ground to a halt as two singles matches were abruptly interrupted. Though streams flickered back to life around 6:10 p.m., the courts stayed quiet until players finally returned at about 6:35 p.m.

Electricity provider Duke Energy pinpointed the blackout to the Mason area and across Cincinnati’s metro region, leaving the grounds shrouded in uncertainty. The drama escalated when a thick plume of smoke billowed across the venue, sending fire trucks rushing in and forcing a complete power shutdown. The Cincinnati Open’s official social media account announced: “Play is currently suspended due to an on-site power outage.”

American journalist Ben Rothenberg also shed light on the chaos: “Seems to be smoke from a generator as power remains out around the Cincinnati Open grounds, halting play because of removal of human line judges and sole reliance on electronic line calling.” The generator, a vital heartbeat for the tournament’s cutting-edge officiating system, faltered, sparking smoke and chaos.

Adding to the night’s surreal scenes, Jose Morgado tweeted, “My god, a fire alarm now. It’s been a nightmare. Sinner can’t help but smile,” as defending champion Jannik Sinner trailed 6-2, 0-1 in the second set against Canadian Gabriel Diallo. This electrical nightmare cast a shadow over an already electrifying day of tennis in Cincinnati, proving that even in sport, the unexpected always looms.

Despite the chaos of a power cut, No. 6 seed and current AO winner, Madison Keys unleashed her full arsenal, storming through 11 of the last 13 games to overpower the unorthodox Aoi Ito in the Cincinnati Open’s third round with 6-4, 6-0. 

Over on the men’s side, defending champion Jannik Sinner showcased his steel, sealing a 6-2, 7-6(6) victory after erasing a set point with a blistering forehand return in the tie-break. But was it a smooth ride for the Italian? Not a chance, every rally was a battle, every point a test, and Sinner had to dig deep to keep his crown defense alive.

Jannik Sinner reflects on battle against Gabriel Diallo

World No. 1 Jannik Sinner has experienced his share of drama on court, but Monday night at the Cincinnati Open delivered something entirely new for the young Italian. During the second game of the second set of his third-round match against Gabriel Diallo, a fire alarm went off in the 1899 Club grandstand, its flashing lights piercing the night. After a short pause, both players agreed to carry on, striking four points with the alarm screaming before it finally fell silent.

Sinner had already seized control early, winning six straight games from 0-2 down to claim the first set 6-2 in their first H2H. But Diallo, the 6’8” Canadian ranked No. 35 in the world, dug deep in the second, leaning on his booming first serve to push the set into a tie-break. There, however, his precision faltered, landing just two of seven first serves in the breaker.

The Canadian still had a glimmer of hope, holding a set point at 6-5. But after sneaking in just his second first serve of the tie-break, he was left helpless when Sinner pounced, rifling a forehand return straight at his feet, a shot as ruthless as it was decisive. Diallo’s struggles on second serve told the story; he won just five of 32 such points against the relentless four-time major champion.

Sinner’s victory extended his hard-court winning streak to 22 matches since losing to Carlos Alcaraz in the Beijing final last October. He has maintained a perfect record against players ranked outside the Top 20 on hard courts since losing to World No. 66 Dusan Lajovic at this very tournament two years ago, achieving an impressive 46-0. “It was a very difficult day at the office. He was serving very well, especially in the second set… If you don’t play well in tough situations like this you can lose these matches,” Sinner admitted afterward.

He has been at the top of the PIF ATP Rankings for 61 weeks in a row, and the 29th player to ever be ranked number one will next play either Tommy Paul or Adrian Mannarino.. With his form ablaze on hard courts, the question lingers: can anyone stop Sinner from defending his Cincinnati crown?