The Unforeseen Fall: Roger Federer's Unexpected Loss at Wimbledon 2002

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Roger Federer had a breakthrough run at Wimbledon 2001, beating seven-time champion Pete Sampras en route to the quarter-final. The young Swiss was among the favorites at The All England Club a year later, but it did not go his way! Roger ended his 2002 Wimbledon campaign with a tough 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 loss to an 18-year-old Mario Ancic on June 25. Former junior finalist ranked 154th qualified for the main draw and played his first match at Majors against Roger! It was Ancic's second ATP tournament, and he showed his full potential after taking out one of the title favorites. The defending champion Goran Ivanisevic was not in the draw, and another hard-hitting player from Split was there to replace him! Ancic fired one booming serve after another and kept Federer without any rhythm, with his return working better than Roger's. Ancic needed an hour and 40 minutes to take down the most prominent youngster in the world, repelling five out of six break chances.

Mario Ancic stunned Roger Federer in the Wimbledon 2002 first round.

Thus, the Croat kept the pressure on the Swiss and broke him three times to emerge at the top in style and secure his first ATP victory! Ancic was the youngest player to make a winning Wimbledon Centre Court debut since Bjorn Borg in 1973. He drew positive vibes from the big scene and delivered a barrage of aggressive and attacking strokes that left Roger behind, celebrating the proudest moment of his young career! The Croat kicked off the encounter strongly, breaking Federer two times in the opening set and clinching it 6-3 in 29 minutes. There were no breaks in set number two, and Mario claimed the tie break 7-2, playing better when it mattered the most and building a massive advantage. Ancic sealed Federer's fate with a single break in the third set that carried him over the top and into the second round.

"I'm still looking for reasons why I played so badly. I'm down right now, and it's quite normal after such a loss. I expected much more than coming here and losing in straight sets; I'm disappointed and have no words. I knew Mario was young but not much more; I tried to get some information from other players as many of them hit with him, unlike me. Besides that information, I could not figure out his game today. I let him play well, and I'm down about my game; it was quite bad. I mean, I had my chances in the second set and missed them. I had the break in the first but could not take my chances. I was 40-0 up on the return once in the second set, and that was my only big chance; I did not make it. I should have won this match; I was a big favorite over Mario, but he played well. It's very disappointing to lose back-to-back first rounds at Majors. I'm looking for reasons, but I have time to figure that out, so we will see," Roger Federer said.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/DGxVNMR

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