Laver Cup match briefly halted as climate protester sets arm on fire on court

A man ran onto the court in London's O2 Arena and set his arm on fire on Friday to protest the use of private jets in Britain, briefly halting the Laver Cup meeting between Stefanos Tsitsipas and Diego Schwartzman.

A man sets fire on his hand during protest at a match Team World’s Diego Schwartzman against Team Europe’s Stefanos Tsitsipas on day one of the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 in London, Friday | Photo Credit: AP Photo/Kin Cheung

A man ran onto the court in London's O2 Arena and set his arm on fire on Friday to protest the use of private jets in Britain, briefly halting the Laver Cup meeting between Stefanos Tsitsipas and Diego Schwartzman.

Security personnel acted quickly to drag the man off the court before play resumed following a quick check of the surface which was not damaged during the bizarre incident.

British media reported that the protestor was a member of the End UK Private Jets group, which claims "carbon emissions in 2022 are genocide."

“It came out of nowhere... I never had an incident like this happen on court,” Tsitsipas, the runner-up at the 2021 French Open, said afterward. “I hope he’s all right.”

The protester “has been arrested and the situation is being handled by the police,” Laver Cup organisers said in a statement.

Tsitsipas went on to win the match 6-2 6-1 to give Team Europe a 2-0 lead over the Rest Of The World in the competition after Casper Ruud had earlier beaten Jack Sock 6-4 5-7 10-7.

Swiss great Roger Federer is due to take to the court later in the day for the final match of his career, with the 41-year-old partnering his great rival Rafa Nadal to face the American duo of Sock and Frances Tiafoe.