Spectator at ATP event in Halle hit by falling advertising banner
The 62-year-old local woman was sitting in the lower tier and left the OWL Arena holding an ice pack against her neck handed to her by Zverev.
The tournament website said the woman did not suffer any major injuries but was taken to a nearby hospital to be checked 'for safety reasons'.
Tournament director Ralf Weber said: 'We deeply regret the incident. There has never been anything like this in our 32-year tournament history.'
Weber said he had promised the woman a season ticket for next year as a small token of appreciation.
Event managers Dr Udo Kleine and Uwe Greipel-Dominik said neighbouring boards were checked after the incident before the match was given the go ahead to continue.
A joint statement from Kleine and Greipel-Dominik on the tournament website said: 'We suspect that the drumming against the boards caused screws to come loose.
'This must not happen and we apologise. We will also check all the other boards and their fixings immediately after the Zverev match.'
'There has never been anything like this in our 32-year tournament history. We deeply regret the incident,' said Tournament Director Ralf Weber. pic.twitter.com/oFrcNjouTz
— TERRA WORTMANN OPEN (@ATPHalle) June 18, 2025
The incident at the ATP 500 grass event round-of-32 tie happened with home favourite Zverev 5-2 ahead and serving for the first set.
Second seed Zverev went on to triumph in 6-2 6-1 in returning to winning ways just three days after his Stuttgart Open final defeat to Taylor Fritz.
Eighth seed Karen Khachanov also impressed with a 7-5 6-3 victory over Libema Open finalist Zizou Bergs to set up a second-round meeting with Felix Auger-Aliassime.
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A TENNIS fan was taken to hospital after a stadium panel collapsed and landed on her during Alexander Zverev's match at Halle earlier today. Zverev, 28, was taking on American Marcos Giron in front of a home German crowd. 5 5 5 With Giron about to serve at 2-5 15-30 in the first set, a loud bang and subsequent yelling could be heard from the crowd. It scarily emerged that an advertising panel had fallen from the front of the upper tier onto the lower seats. Zverev and umpire Renaud Lichtenstein approached the stands offering an ice pack. The tournament went on to confirm that a 62-year-old spectator had been taken to hospital following the frightening incident. But thankfully, the woman did not suffer any major injuries. Tournament director Ralf Weber said: "Something like this has never happened in our 32-year tournament history. We deeply regret the incident." Weber personally visited the spectator in hospital, and offered her a complimentary season ticket for next year's event. Event managers Dr Udo Kleine and Uwe Greipel-Dominik later revealed how they felt the incident had taken place. BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK 5 A joint statement said: "We suspect that the drumming against the cushions caused screws to come loose. "This should not happen, and we apologise. We will also check all other cushions and their fastenings immediately after the Zverev match. The safety of our spectators is our top priority." 'Please stay away from me' - Alexander Zverev swipes at Taylor Fritz in X-rated rant after Stuttgart Open final Following a safety check, the contest was able to continue, with world No3 Zverev winning 6-2 6-1. The 6ft 6in German will take on Italy's Lorenzo Sonego in tomorrow's round of 16. Last week Zverev reached the final of the ATP 250 event in Stuttgart, only to lose to rival Taylor Fritz. In his runner-up speech on court, spiky Zverev joked: "Last but not least, Taylor, I'm f***ing tired of you. 'I don't wanna see you again over the next two to three years. "Please stay away from me. Don't come to Germany anymore. "No, well done you deserve to win this title. "You are one of the best players in the world on this surface and you were much better than me today, so congrats to the whole team and I'm sure you are going to do incredible on the next two tournaments on grass, so well done." 5
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