Middle East conflict: Tennis players flee court after Iranian drone attack in UAE causes fire at nearby oil station

Players and officials fled the field at an ATP Challenger event in the United Arab Emirates when an Iranian drone attack sparked a fire at an oil terminal located about 10 kilometers away.

Two matches in Fujairah – about 90 miles east of Dubai – were stopped shortly after the city’s port was targeted on Tuesday morning. The ATP later confirmed that play had been canceled for the rest of the day.

A live broadcast on the Professional Tennis Players Association website showed that Japanese Hayato Matsuoka and Russian Daniil Ostapenkov, along with the referee and line judges, left the court early in the third set.

Tournament officials can be heard shouting instructions to leave the field.

The Fujairah government media office said in a statement, “The relevant authorities responded to a fire that broke out in the oil industry area in Fujairah as a result of falling debris after the air defense systems successfully intercepted a drone.”

The past three days have witnessed Iranian attacks with drones and missiles towards the UAE, in response to American and Israeli strikes on Iran.

The statement added that defense teams are still “working to contain the incident.” No injuries were reported.

Ukrainian player Vladislav Orlov said that he heard “planes flying around him” while playing his match, adding that there was a lot of smoke in the air.

He added: “It is not safe here now.”

“The health, safety and well-being of our players, staff and tournament workers is our priority,” the ATP said.

She added in a statement sent to BBC Sport: “After consultation with local authorities and security advisors, play has been canceled for the rest of the day as a precaution.”

“We continue to monitor the situation closely and will provide further updates as appropriate.”