Bhupathi, Hewitt shown the door

Meanwhile, two things happened on the first day of the championships on Monday — crowd favourite Anna Kournikova made it and home favourite Greg Rusedski did not. The British masses who had virtually laid siege to the road leading to the “hallowed” precincts of the All-England Club, came away somewhat somber, a little sadder, but definitely satisfied at having got their money’s worth.

While Kournikova scraped past French 10th seed Sandrine Testud in a minor upset 7-5 5-7 6-4, American Vince Spadea finally ended Rusedski’s nearly-Houdini act 6-3 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-7 (8-10) 9-7. Both matches were dramatic in the extreme. Not just because of the sheer following of the protagonists, but also because they all had something to prove.

Both matches were interrupted by rain at crucial stages. Both went down to the wire. Rusedski, the Canadian of Ukranian descent, who became a British citizen in 1995 amidst some controversy, was looking for a big win in front of his adopted country after a terrible year since his foot operation in December. Kournikova, of course, was looking to silence critics who made disparaging comments about her erratic play and lack of ability to make it to the top.

Her statement after the match “I let my tennis do the talking,” was not without significance. While Testud has only herself to blame for the sheer number of unforced errors she made, Kournikova, who squandered a winning position in the second set, 5-up and with two match points in hand, will have to do a re-think on her lack of confidence in closing out matches from a winning position.

The British southpaw had his chances, but was always struggling. The first two games were a pointer. He first failed to hold onto three break points and then dished out six double faults in the next game to allow Spadea to run up a quick 2-0 lead.

Spadea never let go after that, and even both sets that Rusedski won, he did by a whisker, in tie-breaks. Rusedski was a fighter, but he should have been known as the hero. He broke Spadea in the decider to go 7-6 up, served for the set and lost from there.

While a downcast Rusedski walked away from the court to sympathetic applause, Spadea went out to a standing ovation, punching his fists in the air at having ended his 22-match losing streak. It was a milestone of no small measure for Spadea. Ranked 59 to Rusedski’s 21 (though Spadea was 19 in October last year, Rusedski has been as high as No 4 in the world some three years ago), Spadea characterised the match as “outrageous”.

“I thought I’d won 16 times. I felt like freaking. I’m not scared of anyone and it was a battle. We were like gladiators out there.”

He also gave credit to former Aussie champ Pat Cash for helping him out over the last month. “He helped with the serve-and-volleying, just creating a lot of confidence and stay close in these matches — and here I am.”

Talking after his heartbreaking effort on Court 1, a disconsolate Rusedski refused to offer any excuses for his loss, saying “It was pretty difficult.”

But the most poignant moment perhaps was what Rusedski said towards the end. “I tried my best. I served for the match, saved match points, gave as much as I could possibly give. I think the expectations from the British are high, they would like to have a champion from their own. Hopefully, Tim (Henman) can go out and do it for them.”