WIMBLEDON, England — Rafael Nadal bumped into his unknown and unheralded opponent as they headed to a break between games. Perhaps it was incidental contact.
At the previous changeover, Nadal stood and yelled at the chair umpire, complaining about being distracted by 100th-ranked Lukas Rosol while serving. Later, Nadal shook his head and frowned when a Wimbledon official explained that, with light fading and the second-round match heading to a fifth set, they’d need a 45-minute break to close the retractable roof and turn on the lights at Centre Court.
Of all the things that rattled Nadal on Thursday evening, the most significant was Rosol’s game - his 22 aces, ground strokes and shot punctuating stare downs. Put it together and Rosol, making his debut at the All England Club, overpowered 11-time major champion Nadal 6-7 (9), 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4.
“That’s [what] happens when you play against a player who is able to hit the ball very hard, hit the ball without thinking and feeling the pressure,” the second-seeded Nadal said. “At the end, when the opponent wants to play like he wanted to play in the fifth [set], you are in his hands, no? Everything was going right for him.”
It’s the first time since 2005 that Nadal lost in the second round at any major tournament. It also ends two streaks for the Spaniard: He reached the final at the previous five majors, and also reached the final the past five times he entered Wimbledon, winning the grass-court tournament in 2008 and 2010.
“He played a good match,” Rosol said, “but I think I was better today.”
Actually, seven-time French Open champion Nadal came close to a straight-set exit. He barely avoided losing the opener, forced to erase three set points before taking it in the tiebreaker when Rosol hit a forehand into the net.
Rosol took the next two sets, pounding serves, returning well and swinging away from the baseline. It was an aggressive approach, as though Rosol wanted to out muscle Nadal. Even Rosol considered it stunning he was able to stay close, much less win.
Asked afterward what his expectations had been, Rosol replied: “Just to play three good sets, you know. Just don’t lose 6-0, 6-1, 6-1.”
They’re both 26 years old,yet Nadal entered the day with 583 career match victories, and Rosol 19. Nadal owns 50 titles, Rosol zero. In 178 prior major matches, Nadal never had lost to an opponent ranked 70th or worse. In five previous visits to Wimbledon, Rosol lost every time in the first round of qualifying - not even the main event.
He thought Nadal was trying to throw him off in the third set by complaining to the chair umpire.
“He wanted to take my concentration. ... I knew that he will try something,” Rosol said. “I was surprised that he can do it on the Centre Court, Wimbledon, you know. It’s, like, something wrong.”
When they came back out after the roof closed, Rosol broke for a 1-0 lead and held for 2-0.
Rosol still needed to keep holding serve, of course, which is easier said than done against Nadal, one of the top returners in the game. But Rosol did not fold. If anything, he got better. From 2-1, 40-30, Rosol won the last 13 points he served, seven with aces. At 5-4, Rosol served it out this way: ace, forehand winner, ace, ace. He dropped to his knees - a pose generally reserved for winning a final, not a second-round match - and fell forward, staying face-down on the grass for a few seconds.
“He played more than unbelievable,” Nadal said. “You play against an inspired opponent and I am out. That’s all. Is not a tragedy. Is only a tennis match.”
Although Nadal’s loss grabbed the spotlight, Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams reached the third round, as did Andy Roddick and Mardy Fish, who needed five sets and more than four hours to get past 173rd-ranked British wild card James Ward.
And there were a couple of other upsets, such as Xavier Malisse eliminating 13th-seeded Gilles Simon and Benoit Paire beating No. 22 Alexandr Dolgopolov. Also, Mirjana Lucic defeated 2007 Wimbledon runner-up Marion Bartoli and unseeded American Varvara Lepchenko got past No. 31 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
Tale of the tape
A head-to-head look at Thursday’s second round men’s singles match between Lukas Rosol and defending champion Rafael Nadal. Rosol won in an upset, 6-7 (9), 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 in 3 hours, 18 minutes.
LUKAS ROSOL VS. RAFAEL NADAL
67 1ST SERVE PCT. 67
22 ACES 19
3 DOUBLE FAULTS 2
29 UNFORCED ERRORS 16
83 1ST SERVE WINNING PCT. 78
58 2ND SERVE WINNING PCT. 63
65 WINNERS (INC. SERVICE) 41
4-8 BREAK POINTS 3-4
22-28 NET POINTS 14-21
139 TOTAL POINTS WON 137
Sports, Pages 21 on 06/29/2012