Coco Gauff and Karolina Muchova had to deal with a very unusual situation in their semifinal match at the 2023 US Open, as the match was stopped because of a protest.
Protests are not a new thing in the world of tennis. Protestors usually steal the spotlight during a tennis match, or other sporting event, and after a few seconds, all is back to normal, with the match continuing without any major disruption.
However, that wasn't the case in the first women's semifinal match at the 2023 US Open between Coco Gauff and Karolina Muchova. Both fighting for their spot in the second career Grand Slam final, players found themselves in an unexpected situation in the second set.
The first set has been a real rollercoaster, with Gauff going up 5-1 early on, only for the Czech player to recover both breaks, and serve at 5-4 for the American to level the score for the first time in the first set.
Yet, Muchova wasn't able to do that, as the 19-year-old won the opening set 6-4. The Czech player then quickly left the court after the first set, not knowing that she would be soon forced to do it once again.
Gauff quickly won the opening game of the second set, sprinting towards another straight-set win and her first major final in 2023. However, her quick progression, similar to the one at the event, was stopped by protestors at the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
A group of people with t-shirts that read 'End Fossil Fuels' started screaming before Muchova was about to serve, causing the security to act. However, while the security is usually quick to act, this situation was different.
The protestors seemingly refused to leave, causing an uncomfortable situation not just for the organizers and fans but especially for the players. As the break started to prolong, both players were informed that it may take about ten more minutes before the situation would be resolved.
That prompted both players to pack their bags and leave the court, causing a very unusual situation during the semifinal match at the 2023 US Open. At the time of the play suspension, Gauff was leading 6-4, 1-0, with Muchova about to serve.
Eventually, up to eight police officers appeared on the scene, and it became obvious why it was taking so long for them to remove the person from the stands as they glued their feet to the ground.
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