—The first recorded use of Oleoresin Capsicum (OC), or pepper spray as it is more commonly known, at a grand-slam tournament, took place here at Melbourne Park yesterday as police attempted to quell indecent language among fans watching the first-round men’s match between Fernando González, of Chile, and Konstantinos Economidis, of Greece.

Play was halted at the start of the third set on the Margaret Court Arena when the furore became so great that neither player could concentrate. In a statement, Victoria Police said that they had responded to complaints about a group of fans, both Greek and Chilean, making offensive chants and, after identifying the main instigators, warned them about their behaviour.

“Offensive chanting continued and police again approached those involved. As police tried to remove one man, others in the crowd became aggressive and threatening,” the statement read. “Fearing for their safety, our members have deployed OC spray to keep aggressive patrons at bay.” Three men were ejected and have been interviewed, pending charges for assault, failure to obey lawful direction and the use of indecent language.

Fortunately, there was no repeat of the brawl that broke out on the first day of the tournament last year between Serbian and Croatian supporters.

González, who won the match in straight sets, was asked if the fans had said anything derogatory to him in Spanish. “Only one thing, but nothing that bad,” last year’s losing finalist said. “They’re fans. It was very noisy, but the Chileans were also noisy. It was fun.”