WIMBLEDON, England — One day after winning the longest tennis match in history, John Isner lost the shortest men’s match at Wimbledon so far this year.
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 yesterday, required treatment for a neck injury and was beaten by unseeded Thiemo de Bakker of the Netherlands 6-0, 6-3, 6-2.
The 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.”
Federer looked perfectly fresh as he demolished Clement 6-2, 6-4, 6-2, playing like the old grass-court master himself after being stretched to five sets in his first-round match and four in the second.
Federer will next play 16th-seeed Jurgen Melzer, who beat Feliciano Lopez in four sets. Federer and the Austrian played doubles together as juniors but have never faced each other in singles on the tour.
The man Federer has beaten in three Wimbledon finals, Andy Roddick, served 28 aces in a 7-5, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-3 win over Philipp Kohlschreiber to make the round of 16.
In women’s play, five-time champion Venus Williams moved into the fourth round by beating Russia’s Alisa Kleybanova 6-4, 6-2. Williams was down 3-1 in the first set before taking control with her power game as both players went for big shots from the baseline.