British player Cameron Norrie saw his Australian Open progress interrupted when sudden rainfall forced officials to suspend his second-round encounter with Emilio Nava at Melbourne Park.
The downpour arrived at approximately 9pm local time, bringing all matches across the venue to a standstill.
Norrie held a two sets to one advantage and was competing in a closely contested tiebreak when the weather intervened.
After briefly returning to his seat, the umpire instructed both competitors to leave the court, announcing over the public address system: "We're going to send the players back inside, play is suspended."
TRENDING
Stories
Videos
Your Say
The timing of the precipitation prompted immediate reaction from the TNT Sports commentary team, who had been monitoring the threatening conditions for some time.
Guy McCrea observed: "Now the rain comes just to add to the drama.
"Heavy rain, won't be able to play in that.
Australian Open staff rush to clear water off the court
|GETTY
"Hopefully it's a short burst. We've been talking about it, for hours.
"Now it's arrived, with Norrie having got the mini break in his favour, now this."
His colleague Barry Cowan added a wry comment about the situation: "As if this match needed more drama.
LATEST SPORTS NEWS:
Five facts for tennis fans | GETTY/PA"Drama with my weather app, it's the first time in two hours it's said it isn't raining, so that's going in the bin."
The weather disruption extended beyond Norrie's contest, with several other prominent players also forced to abandon their matches mid-play.
Fixtures featuring home favourite Alex de Minaur, Italian star Jasmine Paolini and American Frances Tiafoe were among those affected by the conditions.
Questions arose over the tournament organisers' decision-making, given that Melbourne Park possesses three arenas equipped with retractable roofs.
Despite forecasts warning of potential rainfall and ominous clouds gathering overhead throughout the day, officials had opted not to close any of the available roof structures before the downpour struck.
Meanwhile, earlier on Wednesday, Emma Raducanu crashed out.
Australian Open fans take cover from the rain in Melbourne
|GETTY
The 23-year-old lost in straight sets to world No 55 Anastasia Potapova.
Speaking after her defeat, Raducanu reflected: “I thought it was a very difficult match with the conditions in the first set.
“I thought it was tricky trying to get used to how lively it felt out there.
"The wind was pretty strong from one side, so just not something that I felt too comfortable with.
“I didn't feel like I dealt with it particularly well. But credit to her.
"She found a better solution in the first set, and then really played better, I thought, in the second.”