Fernando Alonso opted for the tennis court rather than Formula One garage after the latest reliability problem with his stuttering McLaren.

The Spaniard has been dogged by problems in the opening four races of the season as McLaren and Honda have failed to give him a car capable of competing.

Alonso has yet to finish a race in 2017 and despite new upgrades for the Spanish Grand Prox he was only able to complete two corners in Barcelona before his car failed again.

This time the two-time world champion was halted by smoke and oil leaking from his engine, the MCL32 rescued by a crane and returned to the paddock under a black sheet.

With his FP1 over, Alonso - who will miss the Monaco GP to race the Indy500 - chose not to stay at the circuit, instead heading out for a game of tennis.

Alonso will hope to have better luck in FP2 later on Friday, providing his car can be repaired in time.