It was back to normal, meanwhile, for defending champion Roger Federer, who showed he was back at the top of his game by sweeping Arnaud Clement in straight sets to reach the fourth round in his bid for a seventh Wimbledon crown.
Marathon man Isner looked weary from the outset Friday, required treatment for a neck injury and was beaten by unseeded Thiemo de Bakker of the Netherlands 6-0, 6-3, 6-2.
Story continues below ↓advertisement | your ad hereThe second-round match was over in just 1 hour, 14 minutes, and the five games won by Isner is the fewest by a male player this week.
It was a complete turnaround from Isner’s epic three-day victory over Nicolas Mahut, which lasted 11 hours, 5 minutes and went to 70-68 in the fifth set.
What’s more, Isner served no aces Friday after hitting a record 112 against Mahut.
“I’ve never been this exhausted before,” Isner said. “Mentally and physically, I was obviously a bit drained. I just didn’t have much in the way of my legs. I was just low on fuel out there. Didn’t really have a chance.”
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 never-ending fifth set against Mahut.
“The turnaround time — he just didn’t have enough time to get his body right,” said Isner’s coach, Craig Boynton. “He’s one tired boy.”
Isner, Mahut playing longest match in historyGuardiola fined for ref rant
