Hubert Hurkacz and Flavio Cobolli were forced to stop their match in the fifth game.

The umpire told Hubert Hurkacz to stop serving when a technical issue interrupted play (Image: Tennis TV)

There was drama on day one of the Rotterdam Open as Hubert Hurkacz’s match against Flavio Cobolli was suspended after just five games.

As Hurkacz tried to serve, the umpire told him to wait and claimed there had been a “problem with the system”.

Both men were kept on the court as experts raced to fix the technical issue. It came moments after Cobolli fell on the court and hurt himself.

Hurkacz was serving at 2-2 15-15 in the first set when chair umpire Renaud Lichtenstein intervened. “We have a problem with the system so we have to wait,” he told the No. 8 seed.

The umpire then addressed the crowd, adding: “Ladies and gentlemen, there is an issue with the line electronic system so we are waiting for them.”

Hurkacz and Cobolli both paced around the court, and the Pole approached Lichtenstein to get more information. But the umpire was in the dark.

“I don’t know. The system is struggling, the computer, so they’re trying to reboot the system and make it work,” he said.

The physio came out to see Flavio Cobolli during the break (Image: Tennis TV)

Cobolli took advantage of the interruption to call the doctor but the physio came out instead.

“He asked for the doctor, it looks like one of the ATP physios though,” Colin Fleming said on commentary.

The Italian took a tumble and grazed his skin on the court in an earlier point before the delay, and commentators thought he wanted assistance after the fall.

Fleming added: “I think he’s left some of his left elbow on the court! You could see a little white mark on the court where the skin came off his elbow.”

Cobolli didn’t appear to receive any treatment and the umpire soon announced that the system had been rebooted, allowing play to continue.

Hurkacz was the better player when the match resumed. He earned a break and won three games in a row, taking a 5-2 lead.

The medical team eventually came back out to see Cobolli but they left before the end of the changeover and the world No. 35 continued playing, though he lost the first set 6-3.

Cobolli left the court with the trainers at the end of the set for a medical timeout. He continued the match and Hurkacz went on to win 6-3 6-2.