It had been billed as Blockbuster Monday but no-one expected the movie to end like this. Rafael Nadal, a two-time Wimbledon champion and one of the greatest players of all time, was dumped out of the Championships on day one by a Belgian journeyman who only just scraped into the draw.
Nadal, who lost here in the second round last year, was beaten 7-6, 7-6, 6-4 on Court No 1 by Steve Darcis, the world No 135, who has never been past the second round at the All England Club.
The Spaniard, who won the French Open just a fortnight ago with a superb display of tennis against world No 1 Novak Djokovic, looked a shadow of that man. Nadal served poorly, missed his groundstrokes and seemingly lacked fight against the 29-year-old whose huge forehand and tricky slice backhand created one of the tournament’s biggest upsets ever.
Nadal had been touted as one of the favourites for the Championship and no-one expected him to fall this early, especially after his humiliation to Lukas Rosol last year. But while that was a five-set battle, this was a walkover, sealed with an ace.
Nadal looked stunned, his Uncle Toni in the crowd expressionless. The main beneficiaries are likely to be Roger Federer and Andy Murray, who are in Nadal’s half of the draw. They won’t believe their luck. Darcis didn’t need any.
Darcis told BBC: 'Nobody was expecting me to win today - I think I did great. Rafa didn't play his best tennis today and the first match on grass is always difficult.'
This guy na disgrace to professional tennis players.. Practice he no gree practice
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