Casper Ruud's match against Alexander Shevchenko was halted after less than 15 minutes of play as someone in the stands started feeling unwell. The No. 13 seed was serving at 2-0 40-15 when fans in the crowd started yelling over to get assistance for the spectator in question, and the umpire asked both players to sit at their benches.

"Gents, let's take a seat," chair umpire Josh Brace told Ruud and Shevchenko. Other officials could be heard communicating via walkie-talkie, asking first-aiders to take to the stands in Stadium 3 court.

The players sat on the sidelines while a court attendant brought a bag of ice and a bottle of water to the stands. As the delay continued, Ruud paced around at the side of the court, and Shevchenko took the opportunity to walk towards his coaching box for a quick chat.

The umpire got back on his microphone to keep the rest of the crowd updated. "Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your patience. As you can see, we're dealing with an emergency at the moment. We have to wait for first aid. When that comes, we can continue playing," he announced.

Spectators applauded as first-aiders finally took to the stands to assist the fan, and play resumed after a brief delay. Ruud got straight back in the zone, holding to extend his lead to 3-0.

The 13th seed continued his demolition job, breaking for a second time and racing through the first set, taking it 6-1 in just half an hour, even after the brief delay. The Norwegian star became a father for the first time earlier this year, welcoming a daughter with his wife, Maria, on January 30.

Ruud took some time away from the tour, skipping Norway's Davis Cup tie against Great Britain and the ATP 500 event in Dallas, where he finished runner-up last year. He's struggled to find form since becoming a father, going 1-2 in matches across his last two tournaments in Delray Beach and Acapulco.

But the former world No. 2 looked in fine form early on in his opening match in Indian Wells this week. Ruud also got on the court with Iga Swiatek for the Eisenhower Cup, a Tie Break Tens mixed doubles event, ahead of the tournament. They reached the semi-finals and lost to eventual champions Taylor Fritz and Elena Rybakina.

It's expected to be a slightly cooler day in 'Tennis Paradise' on Saturday, with temperatures set to reach around 25 degrees Celsius, but the desert heat can still be very difficult to deal with.

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