TWO-TIME Wimbledon champion Rafael Nadal made an early exit for the fourth year in a row as he was outplayed by qualifier Dustin Brown on Centre Court.Germany’s world number 102 won 7-5, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 to reach the third round of a Grand Slam for the third time.
It is only the second time this year that the 30-year-old has won back-to-back matches at the top level.
Nadal, 29, has now lost in the second, first, fourth and second rounds on his past four visits to Wimbledon.
On each occasion the 14-time Grand Slam champion was beaten by a player outside the world’s top 100.
Brown, who changed nationality from Jamaican to German in 2010, now has a 2-0 record against Nadal, having beaten the Spaniard on grass in Halle in 2014.
“You have to play your A game against him,” Brown told BBC Sport.
“I am fortunate I played him twice on grass, which is my favourite surface. My game makes him not play his game. He doesn’t get into a rhythm.”
Nadal’s last four Wimbledon campaigns have ended in defeat to underdogs ranked 100 in the world or lower at the time.
The 14-time Grand Slam champion conceded that after his latest upset he may not recapture the form that secured titles at the All England Club in 2008 and 2010.