Rafael Jodar’s first Wimbledon as a professional has turned into a test of nerve, timing and unfinished business.
The 19-year-old Spaniard was left in danger of a second-round exit after play was suspended Wednesday evening with Pablo Carreno Busta leading 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, 1-2. The pressure is now on Jodar to restart cold and find a way back into a match that was slipping away before darkness stopped play.
Jodar arrived at Wimbledon with momentum from a fast start to his Grand Slam career. He reached the second round on his Australian Open debut earlier this year, then went all the way to the quarter-finals in his first Roland Garros appearance.
But grass has given him a different problem. The 23rd seed won only 30 percent of his second-serve points before the suspension and converted just two of his nine break-point chances. Carreno Busta, 34, used that gap to move within one set of the third round.
There is history between them, which adds bite to the restart. Carreno Busta led Jodar by two sets in the fourth round at Roland Garros but failed to close the match. This time, the veteran is one set from stopping another comeback and booking a meeting with Japanese qualifier Shintaro Mochizuki.
The stoppage also froze another tense Wimbledon scrap. Brandon Nakashima and Jan-Lennard Struff will return tied at two sets each after Nakashima forced a decider with a 6-4, 6-7(6), 6-7(5), 7-6(6) scoreline.
For Jodar, the next swing comes with the match still alive, but only just.
