First-round action at the Brazzaville Challenger in the Republic of Congo was briefly suspended on Tuesday after gunshots were heard outside the grounds. A stream of the meeting between fifth seed Guy den Ouden and Ivan Denisov also appeared to show a form of smoke or gas emerging from the area of the raucous.

Den Ouden had cruised to a 6-1 victory in the first set, but the second half was tied at 2-2 before the unsavoury sounds disturbed Denisov’s preparations for his serve.

The top right of the picture showed people running on a street while loud gunshots were fired, screams were heard, and an ominous mist rose above the grounds’ covered wall.

Both players then left the court before tournament officials halted play until the distressing nearby scene settled.

A later statement from the ATP Challenger Tour claimed that the commotion stemmed from a “routine training exercise.”

It read: “We can confirm that play was temporarily suspended today at the Brazzaville Challenger in the Republic of Congo due to a routine training exercise conducted by a nearby police academy.

“The suspension lasted approximately 10 minutes, after which play resumed without issue.”

Den Ouden recollected himself and pushed on to also win the second set 6-3 and book his spot in the round of 16.

The Dutchman will face Brazil’s Paulo Andre Saraiva Dos Santos on Thursday, but he first has a doubles quarter-final to navigate past.

Den Ouden has partnered with fellow Netherlands native Max Houkes in the doubles, and the pair edged through the last 16 by winning a thriller.

They beat Czechia’s Dominik Kellovsky and Slovakia’s Andrej Martin 11-9 in a decisive tiebreak, having the first set 6-3 before narrowly losing the second 5-7.

On Wednesday, Den Ouden and Houkes face a tougher test for a place in the semi-finals in third-seeded Frenchmen Geoffrey Blancaneaux and Maxime Chazal.

The Brazzaville Challenger is a Category 50 event – the lowest on the ATP Challenger Tour, which is professional tennis’ second tier below the ATP Tour.

Den Ouden enjoyed a fruitful youth career, becoming the first Dutch player to reach the 2020 Boys’ French Open semi-finals since Thiemo de Bakker 14 years earlier.

He is currently the world No. 305 but achieved a career-high No. 270 ranking after lifting his maiden title in September.

The 22-year-old beat fellow Dutchman Jelle Sels in straight sets to clinch the 2024 Dobrich Challenger II in Bulgaria.