After a 90-minute rain delay, Humbert set off to face his Norwegian opponent solely to halt the match even additional when he needed to inform the umpire he did not have something to hit the balls with.
“I do not need any rackets. I’m sorry,” an apologetic Humbert stated to the umpire earlier than the ball toss.
Humbert and Ruud needed to wait only a few minutes earlier than somebody rushed onto the courtroom with three rackets, resulting in cheers and applause from the Wimbledon crowd, and a sheepish smile from the Frenchman.
Perhaps it was due to his embarrassment or the unideal preparation, however Humbert misplaced the primary set earlier than roaring again to upset Ruud — this yr’s French Open runner-up — in 4 units.
Humbert broke Ruud’s serve six instances and hit 53 winners as he superior to the third spherical.
The three-6 6-2 7-5 6-4 victory for Humbert gives one of many greatest shocks of the boys’s draw to this point, with Ruud, the third seed, the highest-ranked participant to be knocked out.
Humbert, ranked 112th on the planet, has had prior success on grass. The 24-year-old was ranked contained in the world’s high 25 final yr after victory on the Halle Open in Germany in 2021.
After the win towards Ruud, which took two hours and 36 minutes, Humbert stated that the floor fits his fashion of play.
“I like to play on grass. I’ve performed plenty of good matches,” Humbert stated. “It’s a large victory. He performed very properly the previous few years, so I’m very glad.”
Humbert will play Belgium’s David Goffin within the third spherical.
