Rafael Nadal could only accept his early Wimbledon loss at the hands of 102nd-ranked German qualifier Dustin Brown, with Spain's 10th seed admitting: "I am a good loser."
"When I am not that good, I always accept (it)," said Nadal after exiting in the Wimbledon second round for the second time in the last four editions. "I'm not happy, but accept that I am not good enough. I never considered myself that good to not accept when somebody's better than you."
Nadal began his grass season with a title last month at Stuttgart. But the confidence he gained from that trophy had evaporated when he ran into serve-and-volley buzz-saw Brown.
"I always had a big respect for this tournament, I always had the dream to play here," said the 29-year-old Nadal. "When I came here (for the first time in (2003) and I felt that, I was not that bad on grass, I always had the motivation to be here and to compete for big things."
But the Spaniard admitted that winning Roland Garros nine times in the weeks before Wimbledon may have compromised his chances over his career.
"After winning the first Grand Slam in my career, Roland Garros (2005), it was not easy to be here competing at my 100 per cent. I spent too much energy with all the clay court season. When I won Roland Garros in 2006, I was working hard the next day to prepare here Wimbledon. That's what I did the rest of years of my career.
"Only two years I couldn't do it was 2012, 2013, and 2009 obviously, that I had the problem. I had to retire from the tournament (through injuries). With the exception of those three years, I did all the things I think are the right way to prepare one of the best tournaments of the world."
An accidental week one flash of a black bra strap has re-ignited the simmering player discontent with Wimbleon's new draconian interpretation of its trademark all-white clothing rule, with tennis traditionalist Roger Federer repeating his call for lightening up the strict dictates.
Elderly blazered minders at the All England Club were chastised in the London press for their metaphorical poking around in the lingerie drawers of female players in search of any hint of colour - either in clothing itself or undergarments.
The bra blowup came from 2014 finalist Eugenie Bouchard, who had no idea she had created a stir but was not punished for her "infraction."
The new regulations first imposed a year ago to a wave of full-on criticism state that even when sweating, any underwear must show through as white. Federer repeated his desire to see some liberalisation of the dictates for both sexes.
"It's all white, we're all for it - we get that. I just find it quite extreme to what extent it's gotten. We're talking white like it was in the '50s. If you look at the pictures then, it was all white.
"I still have the pictures in my mind where Edberg and Becker and all those guys, they had more color. There were iconic T-shirts, iconic moments, I thought."
The 33-year-old said that even back in "his day" Wimbledon allowed some leeway. "I came on tour, you could have some light blue, back when I beat Sampras (2001), it was different. But it was still 90 per cent white, for sure."
But something now is terribly wrong, according to the respected Swiss.
"It got to a point where stripes here would be borderline here. I find that a bit of a pity because you can't do anything with it. No cream colour, no this, no that, fine.
"I would still be in favor for loosening it up a little bit. But then again, it is what it is. You know, I'm happy, I'm proud to be here. So whatever, it's okay."
