After a 90-minute rain delay, Humbert set off to face his Norwegian opponent only to halt the match even further when he had to tell the umpire he didn’t have anything to hit the balls with.
“I do not have any rackets. I am sorry,” an apologetic Humbert said to the umpire before the ball toss.
Humbert and Ruud had to wait just a few minutes before someone rushed onto the court with three rackets, leading to cheers and applause from the Wimbledon crowd, and a sheepish smile from the Frenchman.
Maybe it was because of his embarrassment or the unideal preparation, but Humbert lost the first set before roaring back to upset Ruud — this year’s French Open runner-up — in four sets.
Humbert broke Ruud’s serve six times and hit 53 winners as he advanced to the third round.
The 3-6 6-2 7-5 6-4 victory for Humbert provides one of the biggest shocks of the men’s draw so far, with Ruud, the third seed, the highest-ranked player to be knocked out.
Humbert, ranked 112th in the world, has had prior success on grass. The 24-year-old was ranked inside the world’s top 25 last year after victory at the Halle Open in Germany in 2021.
After the win against Ruud, which took two hours and 36 minutes, Humbert said that the surface suits his style of play.
“I love to play on grass. I have played a lot of good matches,” Humbert said. “It is a big victory. He played very well the last few years, so I am very happy.”
Humbert will play Belgium’s David Goffin in the third round.
