Spectators at the Canadian Open were treated to a bizarre spectacle yesterday as a rally was suddenly halted for the strangest of reasons.Jessica Pegula, seeded fourth, was taking on Iga Swiatek, the top seed, in the semi-final and after the former took the first set 6-4, we entered a crucial stage in the second. It was 6-6 in games, meaning a tiebreak was needed, and with the tiebreak score at 4-3 in favour of Pegula, the moment of hilarity struck.The game was halted mid-point as the song 'Cotton Eye Joe' by Rednex suddenly started playing over the speakers. The umpire very quickly stopped play as the crowd reacted in a bemused fashion, and the television announcer can be heard saying: "Oh wow. 'Cotton Eye Joe' just came on mid-rally... are we in Texas?," while the umpire can be heard telling the players to replay the point.It was certainly one way to liven up proceedings, and despite the inadvertent music break, Pegula was eventually able to put the distraction behind her and win the match 6-2, 6-7, 6-4.

Video: 'Cotton Eye Joe' blasts out over speakers mid-point

Player reacts to 'Cotton Eye Joe' incident

On the 'Cotton Eye Joe' incident, Pegula said: "I just thought it was funny. I've never had that happen, let alone with 'Cotton-Eyed Joe'. I was, like, 'Is this really happening right now?' Of all the songs. It was just, like, what is going on?"

But Pegula was also left frustrated by the gaffe as she failed to win another point in the tiebreak when she felt she had a chance in the rally that got interrupted. She continued: “Yeah, it was a bummer because I hit a really good lob, and she barely got it, and I had a really good play on the ball, and she was kind of out of position from the lob that I hit.

“So, I mean, I don't know if I would have won the point. Maybe. I would have been up 5-2, but that doesn't mean I'm going to win the tiebreaker. I think the wind started shifting, so I felt like I was really against the wind on that side, the side that that point happened on.”

Pegula later shared the moment on her Twitter feed, with the caption: "I mean what the," with a crying laughter emoji. The reaction was shared by fellow pro Victoria Azarenka, who replied: "Iconic reaction."

A rare moment in theory, the saga was, in fact, the second such awkward moment in a match featuring Pegula at the tournament. In the eighth game of the second set of her three-set win over Coco Gauff in the quarter-final, the in-stadium lights went on mid-point as skies darkened, and also caused a let to be called.

'Cotton Eye Joe'

'Cotton Eye Joe' got to number one in 11 countries on its release way back in 1995, and was top of the UK charts for three weeks. The bizarre incident will surely make the rounds of 'What Happened Next?' in sport quizzes.

In the final, Pegula will take on either Elena Rybakina or Liudmila Samsonova. Clearly the players will hope for no further interruptions, musical or otherwise.