A protester was escorted out of Centre Court by security during the Wimbledon men's final between Novak Djokovic and Nick Kyrgios on Sunday afternoon.
The incident occurred early on in the third set of a pulsating match, with Djokovic and Kyrgios level on one set each. The protester is believed to have been shouting "Where is Peng Shuai?", referring to the Chinese tennis player whose safety is the subject of international concern.
The protester was positioned high up in the stands of the 15,000-seater stadium and momentarily brought the final to a standstill as Djokovic aimed to level the games at 2-2 in the third set. Security acted quickly so the match could resume.
Serbian Djokovic, a six-time Wimbledon champion, claimed the second set 6-3 after his Australian rival won the first 6-4. The crowd at Centre Court was boisterous through the match, especially as Kyrgios was typically animated and did not hold back in his comments to his box and the chair umpire.
The 27-year-old was unhappy with one member of the crowd who he believed to be intoxicated having had "700 drinks". Later in the third set, he was furious after Djokovic broke him to take a 5-4 lead, screaming out in the direction of his box as he sat in his chair ahead of the change of ends.
His outburst did not help, however, as Djokovic won the next game to take a 2-1 lead in the final, before making for the dressing room to change his shirt ahead of the fourth set. The 35-year-old took plenty of time before re-emerging on Centre Court as Kyrgios - who was playing in his first Grand Slam final - attempted to compose himself.
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Former British number one Tim Henman was less than impressed by the divisive star's actions and told BBC TV: "Kyrgios has let himself down. That dialogue is going to come back and haunt him." He added: "Surely it is about accepting responsibility.
"It's about Kyrgios going out and executing his game plan to the best of his own ability. He's got in his own way and handed over the initiative to Djokovic."
Kyrgios started the fourth set in better form, holding his serve to 15. That being said, he continued to mutter in the direction of his box, clearly unhappy about how earlier events unfolded, and Djokovic had little trouble holding his own serve to level the games at 1-1, producing a sublime ace down the centre of the court in the process.
