By Martyn Herman
LONDON (Reuters) - Giant American John Isner's surreal Wimbledon adventure ended abruptly on Friday when the rigors of his Herculean first-round victory over Nicolas Mahut caught up with him in brutal fashion.
Just 19 hours had elapsed since he won the 980th point of his mind-boggling 11 hour five minute duel against Mahut and when he walked gingerly back out on court on Friday lunchtime it was clear there was nothing much left in the tank.
From winning the longest tennis match ever likely to be played, spread over three days, a fragile Isner was cut down to size in 74 minutes by ruthless Dutchman Thiemo de Bakker.
Talk about extremes.
Friday's 6-0 6-3 6-2 defeat was the shortest men's match so far at this year's championships and it contained not one single ace off the Isner racket, compared to the record-smashing 112 that he fired past the unfortunate Mahut.
"I was low on fuel out there and didn't really have a chance," said Isner who lost the first set in 16 minutes having spent the morning stretched out on a treatment table after waking up with a stiff neck, heavy legs and blistered feet.
"It wasn't like I was dying out there, I was just tired. Sometimes the adrenaline can take over but that wasn't the case today. I've never been this exhausted before but it still stinks to lose in the second round."
Justine Henin and fellow Belgian Kim Clijsters set up an intriguing fourth-round collision of former world No.1s when they waltzed through against tricky Russians.
Clijsters, back at the tournament for the first time since 2006, crushed Maria Kirilenko 6-3 6-3 while Henin, whose last appearance was in 2007, beat 12th seed Nadia Petrova 6-1 6-4.
"You go out there and it's 50-50," Clijsters, who was followed out of retirement by Henin, said of the match that will be the pick of the last 16.
Five-times champion Venus Williams showed no sign of slowing down now that she has turned 30, steaming into the last 16 with a 6-4 6-2 defeat of another Russian, Alisa Kleybanova.
Fourth seed Jelena Jankovic played her best tennis of the week to demolish Ukraine's Alona Bondarenko 6-0 6-3 and will now face Vera Zvonareva who knocked out 15th seed Yanina Wickmayer.
Former champion Lleyton Hewitt continued his fine grasscourt form to grind down Frenchman Gael Monfils on a sweltering Center Court populated by a sprinkling of his yellow-clad fan club who serenaded their hero with several renditions of "If you all love Lleyton clap your hands."
The Australian, who clocked up his 100th victory on grass in the previous round, saved three set points in the second set tiebreak against Monfils on his way to a 6-3 7-6 6-4 victory and a last-16 collision with third seed Novak Djokovic.
Djokovic, who survived a late-night five-setter against Olivier Rochus in the first round under Center Court's roof, is warming to his task and was in fine fettle as he destroyed Spanish claycourter Albert Montanes.
The Serb now has a chance to release some anger at his country's World Cup exit after defeat by Australia.
"When my football team loses, I'm a very bad loser," Djokovic told reporters. "I had a sleepless night after we lost to Australia."
Taiwan's Lu Yen-Tsun broke through the third-round barrier at a grand slam for the first time when he put out Germany's Florian Mayer who retired at two sets down.
Defending champion Roger Federer, who lost to Hewitt in the Halle final and was wobbly in his opening two rounds against obscure rivals, will hope to locate his A-game later when he faces Arnaud Clement on Center Court.
(Editing by Miles Evans)
