Sports are great. Animals are great. When the two mix, it’s incredible — sometimes.
Frances Tiafoe and Grigor Dimitrov had a front-row experience during their quarterfinal match on Tuesday at the US Open when an insect disrupted the contest.
Tiafoe pointed out the black insect during the dead ball as the ball boys sprinted onto the court and spent around 30 seconds trying to contain it by hand before the match resumed.
NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES! pic.twitter.com/MzQ0JMRYJj
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 4, 2024
This wasn’t close to the first time an animal has interrupted play during a sporting event. There was that time when a sportswriter’s own dog ran onto the field, interrupting a Georgia football game. And San Antonio seemingly has had as many bat encounters as “Dracula.”
In honor of these amazing incidents, let’s look back at some other top animal-on-field moments.
What: Raccoon
Where: Chester, Pennsylvania
When: 2024
The Philadelphia Union and New York City FC had a friendly creature that caused a brief stoppage in play at Subaru Park in Philadelphia.
A raccoon strolled onto the field midway through the first half. It proceeded to evade workers that attempted to remove it. However, after 161 seconds, the raccoon was taken off the field.
0:18
Raccoon invades the field during Union vs. NYCFC
The Philadelphia Union vs. New York City FC game in MLS is halted due to a raccoon running onto the field.
What: Turtle
Where: Bradenton, Florida
When: 2024
The Bradenton Marauders, a minor league affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, were in the middle of their game when a turtle caused a brief stoppage in play. The surprisingly fast reptile roamed around the outfield for a bit before pitcher Magdiel Cotto managed to safely remove it from play.
“Is that a squirrel? Or a rodent? … It’s a turtle!”
A curious creature makes a mad dash across the outfield grass during @stluciemets/@The_Marauders action 🐢 pic.twitter.com/rlH3UJCaje
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) May 11, 2024
What: Bees
Where: Chase Field, Arizona
When: 2024
Ahead of a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Arizona Diamondbacks received a few surprise visitors behind home plate — bees.
There was a colony forming on the protective netting behind home plate, which resulted in a delay of one hour and 55 minutes, according to the Diamondbacks.
The Diamondbacks had to call beekeeper Matt Hilton from Blue Sky Pest Control.
Hilton said he was at his son’s T-ball game when he got…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at www.espn.com – TENNIS…