Rafael Nadal lost last year in the second round at Wimbledon after dealing with a knee injury and this time it came a round sooner, as Steve Darcis defeated the French Open champion in the opening round at the All England Club in straight sets.
Nadal appeared to be dealing with a knee injury again after that cropped up last year and it is possible that once again, after winning the French Open, he could miss the second half of the year. Nadal was in trouble after losing the first set in a tiebreaker and he ended up losing the match in straight sets after Roger Federer won his in the same way. Nadal was seeded fifth and now the tournament has one less major player, as Roger Federer, Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic are set to take advantage.
The loss came a year after his stunning defeat in the second round against Rosol, who won that time but lost this year n 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (4), 6-4 in th3e first round as well. Nadal had looked fantastic since coming back from his knee injury, but now all that is in question after he lost early again at the tournament.
Federer now has the chance to win his eighth Wimbledon and he will avoid playing Nadal in the quarterfinals, as that was a possibility. He will not likely have to defeat both Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic after Nadal lost and he will be looking to get through to the finals. Other results from the day include wins from Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and John Isner.
