It was a case of so near yet so far for Nathalie Dechy on Wednesday.
The Frenchwoman came within a point of dumping world number one Ana Ivanovic out of Wimbledon in the second round but found the Gods were not on her side.
Leading 7-6, 5-4 Dechy came to the brink of pulling off the biggest upset at this year's tournament when she earned two match points on Ivanovic's serve.
While Ivanovic punched away a winner to save the first, the net came to the Serbian top seed's aid on the second.
After Ivanovic has slapped a ferocious groundstroke, the ball rolled along the top of the net and then, after two agonising seconds, crept over.
"During one second I thought I won because the ball stayed on the net for just a tiny bit," the 97th-ranked Dechy said after she was beaten 6-7, 7-6, 10-8.
"Then I didn't see clearly if it was going on my side or on her side. Then I saw.
"I was like, 'Gee, there's maybe somebody in the sky who helped her on that one'.
"It's why this sport is so difficult but so beautiful at the same time."
That great escape spurred Ivanovic to level the contest at one set all but Dechy once again discovered that luck was not on her side.
At 5-5 in the third set Dechy charged to the net to punch away a volley winner but just before she made contact with the ball her visor slipped off her head and the umpire made her replay the point, which she lost.
A bemused Dechy could do little but accept the ruling.
Ivanovic took the incident in her stride and completed victory in three hours 24 minutes.
While Ivanovic celebrated her remarkable escape by leaning over and kissing the net, Dechy could only bury her head under a towel and weep.
"It's always so tough when you lose these kind of matches. But I think I gave my best today.
"I'm completely disappointed right now and I was crying for the next hour after the match. But this is just the sport. You cannot do anything about it."
Asked about Ivanovic's reaction to the win, she added: "The net deserved it."
"Maybe today she can go and play lotto also a little bit. It would be a good day for her."
More from rediff