Paperjam.lu

 Olivier Minaire

Luxembourg's number one tennis player Gilles Muller could not progress beyond the third round of Wimbledon after falling to world number one Rafael Nadal in straight sets. But Nadal’s victory was not as straight-forward as it seemed, with Muller failing to covert a set point in the opening set and twice taking the Spaniard to tie-breaks. “Nadal struggled on occasion to negotiate Muller's ground strokes,” wrote Jamie Jackson in The Guardian. Indeed, many commentators praised the Luxembourger’s spirit and fortitude, but he just lacked that killer instinct when presented with the rare opportunity to break Nadal’s serve.

Muller had won through to the encounter with Nadal after his second round opponent, Canadian Milos Raonic retired hurt from their match. Raonic, world ranked 25 but only seeded 31 at the All England Championships, strained a strained hamstring just 24 minutes into the match--the Maple Leaf Missile, as he is known for his powerful serve, had been leading 3-2 in the first set and had broken Muller’s serve.

But Muller could not repeat his 2005 feat of beating the Spaniard at Wimbledon, and after losing the two tie-breaks he collapsed in the face of Nadal’s increasing confidence. The match ended 7:6 (8:6), 7:6(7:5), 6:0. Muller now focuses on Luxembourg’s Davis Cup tie against Great Britain, including Andy Murray, in Glasgow in July.