| Published: | Jun 25, 2010 2:00 PM EDT |
| Updated: | Jun 25, 2010 11:08 AM EDT |
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) - One day after winning the longest
tennis match ever, John Isner lost in about 75 minutes.
The Wimbledon marathon man looked weary from the outset Friday,
required treatment for a neck injury and was beaten by unseeded
Thiemo de Bakker 6-0, 6-3, 6-2.
Isner had no aces after hitting a record 112 in his epic
three-day victory over Nicolas Mahut.
Starting shortly after noon in warm sunshine, Isner received a
standing ovation when he walked onto court. He immediately lost his
serve - something that didn't happen once in his 70-68 fifth set
against Mahut.
Isner dropped the first set in 16 minutes, winning only nine
points while committing 11 unforced errors. After the set, he took
an injury timeout and received a neck massage from a trainer.
His shots had a little more zip after that. The crowd roared
when Isner finally won a game after 32 minutes to trail 2-1 in the
second set.
But he continued to move sluggishly. Several times he didn't
even pursue shots, and when he buried a forehand in the net in the
third set, he bent over with his hands on his knees.
Isner's average first serve was 114 mph, well off his normal
pace, which often tops 130. He won less than half his service
points and never reached break point on de Bakker's serve.
The listless performance was hardly surprising, given the
victory over Mahut lasted a record 183 games and more than 11 hours
of play. The records were mind-boggling:
-Longest match: 11 hours, 5 minutes
-Longest set: 8 hours, 11 minutes
-Most games in a match: 183
-Most games in a set: 138
-Most aces: 215 (Isner 112, Mahut 103)
-Most consecutive service games held: 168 (84 each)
The drama of the match - which started on Tuesday and was
suspended by darkness over two nights - overshadowed another
historic occasion at the All England Club.
Queen Elizabeth II visited Wimbledon for the first time in 33
years, but stayed for only one match, sitting in the Royal Box to
watch Britain's Andy Murray win his second-round match in straight
sets over Jarkko Nieminen.
The queen did not see top-ranked players Rafael Nadal and Serena
Williams win their matches.
Hours after the queen left the grounds, Nadal took Centre Court.
He fell behind two sets to one before rallying to beat Robin Haase
5-7, 6-2, 3-6, 6-0, 6-3, winning all 20 service points in the final
set.
Nadal had been invited to meet the queen with other players
earlier in the day, but defended his decision to practice for his
match instead.
"I am playing in Wimbledon. It's not a joke. I love this
tournament," Nadal said. "I have a lot of respect for the queen.
I have a lot of respect for this tournament. Today is a match day
for me, no? So I have my things to do."
Serena Williams did meet the queen and was slightly disappointed
by the curtsy she had been practicing for days.
"I couldn't get as low as I wanted to," she said.
Williams then went out and beat Anna Chakvetadze 6-0, 6-1 in 48
minutes, but wasn't happy the match was put on Court 2 instead of
Centre Court in recognition of her status as defending champion and
three-time winner.
"I don't think I should be out there," Williams said.
The Queen clapped politely at the end of Murray's victory, while
Murray and Nieminen bowed in synchronized fashion coming on and off
the court.
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