Protestor Ties Themself to Net During Casper Ruud vs. Marin Cilic French Open Match

Norwegian tennis star Casper Ruud defeated Marin Cilic in the semifinals of the French Open on Friday to secure a berth in the final round of the men's tournament against Rafael Nadal. However, the match featured some unexpected action.

During the third set of Friday's match between Ruud and Cilic, a protester ran onto the court and tied themself to the net wearing a shirt that read "We have 1028 days left," according to TMZ Sports.

The protester appeared to have been from the French climate change activist group "Derniere Renovation."

The match was paused for about 15 minutes while security worked to untie the protester from the net and remove them from the court. Both Ruud and Cilic were escorted off the court during the incident and did not return until security deemed it safe to do so.

This marks one of a number of similar incidents that have occurred over the last several months.

During a Minnesota Timberwolves game, a protester glued themself to the court in protest of team owner Glen Taylor, whose egg farm reportedly killed chickens in response to a bird flu outbreak, according to TNT's Allie LaForce.

Another protester chained themself to the basket at a separate Timberwolves game just days later. The protester was reportedly from the same group.

The French Open is set to conclude on Friday when Ruud and Nadal battle for the title. On the women's side, world No. 1 Iga Swiatek is set to take on CoCo Gauff in the final round on Saturday.

Following the conclusion of the French Open, the grass court season kicks off in Stuttgart, Germany, on June 6. The next major tournament in the tennis circuit is Wimbledon, which begins on June 27.