NEW YORK — One hundred and eight minutes on court; fewer than five minutes at the press conference. Rafael Jódar failed to expectations and said goodbye to the US Open on his debut with a poor showing both on the court and in front of the microphones.
His defeat on Wednesday — 6-2, 6-1 and 6-1 to Chinese player Bu Yunchaokete, ranked 124th in the world and a lucky loser in New York — was not in anyone’s calculations.
Health problems? Physical complications? None of that. The Spaniard moved quickly from the court to the press room and answered with brief responses, with no intention of going deeper or explaining too much about the reasons for his disaster. No excuses, just a clear desire to get out of there as fast as possible.
“He played better than me, and that is the reason he won today,” he said.
“Physically fine. Yes, that is all,” he added.
Why does he think he was unable to produce his tennis?
“Right now I do not know. The match just ended. There will be time to analyse it and see where I can improve.”
37 unforced errors, just 15 winners. Jódar paid for his inexperience on Court 17 at Flushing Meadows: “I am new on the tour. I am just trying to learn from this so it does not happen again. The first time it can happen to anyone. We are human. The second time could be bad if I have not learned from this one.”
A journalist asked whether he pays attention to the perception of him on the internet and social media following certain controversial incidents. The latest: his shoelaces breaking repeatedly during a match at the Cincinnati Masters, naturally cooling the rhythm of the game each time the Spaniard had to replace them.
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The 19-year-old turned to the moderator: “What is the question?”
“It had to do with delays during matches,” the USTA member replied.
“The laces did not break today,” Jódar told the reporter. “The question? What is the question? I don’t know. I don’t understand the question,” the Spaniard said.
“When your laces were breaking, I am sure you noticed that a lot of people were talking about it online. I wonder if you are concerned that, if you talk about your physical condition, people will think you are making excuses.”
The world No. 13 looked at the moderator again and replied, visibly irritated: “The question does not make sense.”
What is coming on his calendar?
“I don’t know. We will see and make the best decisions,” he said.
Jódar seemed to forget that in two weeks he will experience one of the most special moments any tennis player can have: representing his country for the first time in Davis Cup, when Spain visits Chile to contest a place in the Bologna finals.
With Alcaraz absent, the 19-year-old will carry the responsibility of being his country’s No. 1. Jódar will experience what it is like to play in front of a Chilean crowd that will not make life easy for him.
