Isner–Mahut match at the 2010 Wimbledon Championships
Encyclopedia
The Isner–Mahut match at the 2010 Wimbledon Championships
is the longest match in tennis history
, measured both by time and number of games. In the Gentlemen's Singles
tournament first round, the American 23rd seed John Isner
defeated the French qualifier Nicolas Mahut
after 11 hours, 5 minutes of play over three days, with a final score of 6–4, 3–6, 6–7(7–9), 7–6(7–3), 70–68 for a total of 183 games.
The match began at 6:13 pm British Summer Time
(17:13 UTC
) on Tuesday, , 2010. At , due to fading light, play was suspended at two sets all. After resuming on Wednesday, June 23 at , the record for longest match was broken at . The light faded again, and so play was suspended at , with the final set tied at 59 games all. Play resumed at on Thursday, June 24, and Isner won at , the final set having lasted 8 hours, 11 minutes.
Both players broke numerous Wimbledon and tennis records
, including each serving over 100 aces
, with the match being referred to as 'the endless match'.
6–3, 6–0, in the first round, then Alex Bogdanovic
3–6, 6–3, 24–22, and finally Stefan Koubek
in five sets, 6–7(8), 3–6, 6–3, 6–4, 6–4.
Having played through the qualifying stage, Mahut was drawn against Isner in the first round of Gentlemen's Singles. Their match was scheduled for Court 18.
Isner drank a "recovery shake
" and took an ice bath
. Fellow American Andy Roddick
brought take-out food
for him and his coach, including "three boxes of pizza
, all sorts of chicken
and mashed potatoes"; Isner said later that he was so hungry he could have eaten "12 Big Macs
", but reported that drinking coconut water
helped him rehydrate and avoid cramping as he had experienced in the past. He slept for less than four hours before arising. Mahut also slept for only a few hours, and had a cold bath and a massage
. The next morning, the BBC reported that Mahut had been practising and Andy Murray informed them that Isner had been on a treadmill before play resumed.
The match was resumed on , and both players continued to dominate their service games. At 68–69, 30–15, Mahut netted a drop shot
that would likely have won the point. Isner, far back in the court at the time, later said that he wouldn't have had the energy to chase after that shot. On the next point, Isner passed Mahut at the net with a difficult inside-out forehand from the middle of the court that landed just inside the line and the service box. This brought up Isner's fifth match point (and the first in the day) and his 14th break point of the match, which he converted with a down-the-line backhand passing shot. Thus, after 65 minutes of play on the 3rd day of the match, Isner won the deciding final set, 70–68.
official Mohamed Lahyani. Lahyani said afterwards that he was so "gripped by the amazing match" that his concentration stayed solid and he did not think about eating or going to the toilet. On the second day of the match, two groups of 14 linespeople and four groups of 28 ballboys and ballgirls
were used in a rotation. At the end of the match, the umpire announced the score incorrectly, accidentally switching the scores of the two tie-break sets.
stood still at 47–47 and later went dark. IBM
programmers said it was only programmed to go to 47–47 but would be fixed by the next day. The online scoreboard at the official website lasted slightly longer: At 50–50 it was reset to 0–0. Users were asked to "please add 50 to the Isner/Mahut game score". An IBM programmer worked on the scoring system
until to accommodate the match's scores for the next day, although it would have again malfunctioned had the match gone beyond 25 more games.
and Ann Haydon-Jones
on behalf of the All England Club, as special recognition of the game. The players were then interviewed on court by John Inverdale
, before a photocall for the press alongside one of the two Court 18 scoreboards showing the score. Mahut subsequently donated memorabilia from the match for display at the International Tennis Hall of Fame's Museum
in Newport, Rhode Island
.
On 14 July Isner and Mahut were jointly awarded the 2010 ESPY Award for "Best Record-Breaking Performance", beating fellow nominees Roger Federer
and Usain Bolt
. Isner accepted the award in Los Angeles on behalf of both men.
In addition, the AELTC placed a plaque commerating the match at Court 18.
on June 25 at on Court 5. The match was originally scheduled for June 24, but it was postponed due to the length of Isner's first round match against Mahut. De Bakker also had a lengthy first round match against Santiago Giraldo
, winning by a score of 16–14 in the fifth set, but unlike Isner had an additional day off prior to his second round match. Isner lost to De Bakker 0–6, 3–6, 2–6 in just 74 minutes, the shortest men's Wimbledon match at that point in 2010, without serving a single ace. Isner was visibly exhausted and required medical treatment for neck and shoulder problems throughout the match.
Isner was also due to play a doubles match with his partner Sam Querrey
on June 24 (against Michał Przysiężny and Dudi Sela
), but it was postponed to June 25. Isner's doubles match was tentatively scheduled as the second match of that day on Court 19 following another men's doubles match; however, they withdrew from the doubles because Isner had a blister on his toe. After being eliminated from the tournament, Isner said, "I'll watch sports, I'll take in the World Cup
, I'll go fishing, I'll do whatever. Just anything away from the tennis court."
As for Mahut, his doubles match with partner Arnaud Clément
against Colin Fleming
and Ken Skupski
started late in the evening on June 24 (also on Court 18); the match was suspended after Mahut and Clément lost the first set. On June 25, Mahut/Clément – Fleming/Skupski was scheduled as the fourth match on Court 18 because Clément had a third-round singles match on Centre Court against Roger Federer
. Because the match between Daniel Brands
and Victor Hănescu
lasted almost 3 hours, 30 minutes and ended around 8:45 pm local time, the doubles match was postponed again; it was re-scheduled as the first match on Court 14 on June 26. On resumption, Fleming/Skupski defeated Mahut/Clément, 7–6(4), 6–4, 3–6, 7–6(4).
In terms of subsequent meetings between the two; their next meeting after the match came at the ITF world mixed team championships, 2011 Hopman Cup
exhibition in Perth
. The American broke in the opening game to record a straight sets win. In a twist of fate the pair's first competitive rematch happened at the 2011 Wimbledon Championships
, again in the first round. In that match, held on the new Court No. 3, Isner defeated Mahut in straight sets 7–6(4), 6–2, 7–6(6) in 2 hours and 3 minutes.
said, "This is the greatest advertisement for our sport. It makes me proud to be a part of it. We often don't get the respect we deserve in tennis for the athletic demands it places on players, but this should push that respect way up".
Other players, former players, officials, media commentators and fans also praised the behaviour of both players. Roger Federer
said of the match, "It's so impressive to see. I mean, I was watching this. I don't know if I was crying or laughing. It was too much". Federer also added, "This is absolutely amazing. [...] This is beyond anything". Novak Djokovic
extolled both players, saying, "You have to give them credit, both of them. Whoever wins today, I think both of them are winners".
Sports Illustrateds Jon Wertheim said that the victory might give Isner a self-esteem boost. McEnroe speculated, however, that the match might have shortened Isner and Mahut's careers by six months. A sports surgeon
said the players had risked dehydration
, hyperthermia
, and kidney damage
during the long match, and that one or both might suffer "some sort of injury or persistent problem over the next six months [...] shoulder problems, tendonitis
, and recurrent knee problems", as well as the inability to "get into a groove" mentally for up to a year.
The chorus of Dan Bern
's song about the match concludes with the scores of the five sets: "six-four, three-six, six-seven, seven-six, seventy-sixtyeight". An a capella performance of "Isner & Mahut" recorded in 2010 appears on Bern's album "Live in New York".
The previous record for games played in a match was the 122-game 1973 Davis Cup
match in which the United States team of Stan Smith
and Erik Van Dillen
defeated the Chile
team of Patricio Cornejo
and Jaime Fillol
7–9, 37–39, 8–6, 6–1, 6–3. The previous record for most games in a singles match was the 112-game 1969 match in which Pancho Gonzales
defeated Charlie Pasarell
22–24, 1–6, 16–14, 6–3, 11–9, also in the first round at Wimbledon. The singles record since the introduction of the tie-break was the 2003 Australian Open
quarter-final match, in which Andy Roddick
and Younes El Aynaoui
played 83 games; Roddick won 4–6, 7–6(5), 4–6, 6–4, 21–19.
The previous official record for duration was set at the 2004 French Open
when Fabrice Santoro
defeated Arnaud Clément
6–4, 6–3, 6–7(5), 3–6, 16–14, in 6 hours, 33 minutes. The unofficial record of 6 hours, 40 minutes, was set on 2009, when Chris Eaton
defeated James Ward
6–3, 6–2, 6–7(3), 2–6, 21–19 in a playoff match to represent the Great Britain Davis Cup team
in a 2009 Davis Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I second round tie versus Ukraine. Isner-Mahut's fifth set alone lasted some 90 minutes longer than the previous longest match. Indeed, even that portion of the fifth set played on the second day was about half an hour longer than the previous longest match, so it also broke the record for the longest play in a single day.
John Isner served his 79th ace to take the final set to 39–38 with serve. This surpassed Ivo Karlović
's 78 aces that he served on 2009 in a Davis Cup
match against Radek Štěpánek
. In all, Isner served 113 aces; Mahut also surpassed the previous record with 103 aces.
The length of the match exceeded the total playing time of Serena Williams
in every round combined in winning the previous year's Ladies Wimbledon title. She played for less than ten hours in the entire tournament.
, BBC Two
and BBC HD
, which were all the television channels which the BBC
used to cover Wimbledon. The match was broadcast live in its entirety on the BBC Red Button.
Commentating throughout were Ronald McIntosh and Greg Rusedski
. It was McIntosh's first ever Wimbledon match.
In the United States, ESPN
and sibling channel ESPN2
telecast the match.
(UTC+1)
Tuesday 22 June 2010
Wednesday 23 June 2010
Thursday 24 June 2010
2010 Wimbledon Championships
The 2010 Wimbledon Championships took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The tournament ran from Monday 21 June until Sunday 4 July 2010. It was the 124th staging of the Wimbledon Championships, and the third Grand...
is the longest match in tennis history
Longest tennis match records
This article details longest tennis match records by duration or number of games.The 1973 introduction of the tiebreak reduced the opportunity for such records to be broken...
, measured both by time and number of games. In the Gentlemen's Singles
2010 Wimbledon Championships – Men's Singles
The Men's Singles event at the 2010 saw Rafael Nadal, the World No. 1 and 2nd seed, defeat 12th seed Tomáš Berdych 6–3 7–5 6–4 in the final to win his 2nd Wimbledon title, and his 8th Grand Slam title overall....
tournament first round, the American 23rd seed John Isner
John Isner
John Robert Isner is an American professional tennis player. He achieved his career-high rank of no. 18 on July 5, 2010, and has been as high as the second-ranked American tennis player behind Andy Roddick...
defeated the French qualifier Nicolas Mahut
Nicolas Mahut
Nicolas Pierre Armand Mahut is a French tennis player. Mahut is right-handed and has previously won the Orange Bowl in 1999, becoming professional in 2000. He is a good serve and volleyer and a doubles expert, having won many tournaments with his doubles partner Julien Benneteau. His career high...
after 11 hours, 5 minutes of play over three days, with a final score of 6–4, 3–6, 6–7(7–9), 7–6(7–3), 70–68 for a total of 183 games.
The match began at 6:13 pm British Summer Time
British Summer Time
Western European Summer Time is a summer daylight saving time scheme, 1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. It is used in the following places:* the Canary Islands* Portugal * Ireland...
(17:13 UTC
Coordinated Universal Time
Coordinated Universal Time is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is one of several closely related successors to Greenwich Mean Time. Computer servers, online services and other entities that rely on having a universally accepted time use UTC for that purpose...
) on Tuesday, , 2010. At , due to fading light, play was suspended at two sets all. After resuming on Wednesday, June 23 at , the record for longest match was broken at . The light faded again, and so play was suspended at , with the final set tied at 59 games all. Play resumed at on Thursday, June 24, and Isner won at , the final set having lasted 8 hours, 11 minutes.
Both players broke numerous Wimbledon and tennis records
Longest tennis match records
This article details longest tennis match records by duration or number of games.The 1973 introduction of the tiebreak reduced the opportunity for such records to be broken...
, including each serving over 100 aces
Ace (tennis)
In tennis, an ace is a legal serve that is not touched by the receiver, winning the point.In professional tennis, aces are generally seen on a player's first serve, where the server can strike the ball with maximum force and take more chances with ball placement .The most common placement of an ace...
, with the match being referred to as 'the endless match'.
Background
The match took place during the 2010 edition of the 13-day Wimbledon Championships, held every June and July. Mahut, who was not ranked high enough to qualify for the tournament automatically, earned his place by winning in the qualifying pre-tournament, where he was seeded 27th. He played three qualification rounds, beating Frank DancevicFrank Dancevic
Frank Russell Dancevic is a Canadian professional tennis player. He first became the country's top singles player, according to ATP rankings, on February 10, 2003, as an eighteen-year old, and remained so from January 30, 2006 until June 20, 2010. He is the Canada No...
6–3, 6–0, in the first round, then Alex Bogdanovic
Alex Bogdanovic
Aleksa Bogdanovic , also known as his British nickname Alex, is a Serbian-British tennis player born in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. Alex was brought to England by his parents Dušan and Amelija when he was seven and took up tennis as a means of making new friends.Bogdanovic turned professional in 2002...
3–6, 6–3, 24–22, and finally Stefan Koubek
Stefan Koubek
Stefan Koubek is a tennis player from Austria. Koubek plays left-handed with a double-handed backhand. His idol when growing up was Thomas Muster. Koubek has won three titles, two of which have come on hardcourts; despite this, he says his favorite surface is clay.His nickname is Cooley or Stef...
in five sets, 6–7(8), 3–6, 6–3, 6–4, 6–4.
Having played through the qualifying stage, Mahut was drawn against Isner in the first round of Gentlemen's Singles. Their match was scheduled for Court 18.
The match
Match details
The match started on the tournament's second day. After four sets, it was halted due to darkness, with the score at two sets each. Resuming on , it became the longest match ever. The match was suspended for a second time because of darkness on the evening of June 23 at 59–59 in the fifth set despite chants of "We want more, we want more" from the onlooking spectators.Isner drank a "recovery shake
Sports drink
A sports drink beverage is designed to help athletes rehydrate when fluids are depleted after training or competition. Electrolyte replacement promotes proper rehydration, which is important in delaying the onset of fatigue during exercise...
" and took an ice bath
Cryotherapy
Cryotherapy is the local or general use of low temperatures in medical therapy or the removal of heat from a body part. The term "cryotherapy" comes from the Greek cryo meaning cold and the word therapy meaning cure...
. Fellow American Andy Roddick
Andy Roddick
Andrew Stephen "Andy" Roddick is an American professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. He is currently the second highest-ranked American player, behind Mardy Fish....
brought take-out food
Take-out
Take-out or takeout , carry-out , take-away , parcel , or tapau , is food purchased at a...
for him and his coach, including "three boxes of pizza
Pizza
Pizza is an oven-baked, flat, disc-shaped bread typically topped with a tomato sauce, cheese and various toppings.Originating in Italy, from the Neapolitan cuisine, the dish has become popular in many parts of the world. An establishment that makes and sells pizzas is called a "pizzeria"...
, all sorts of chicken
Chicken (food)
Chicken is the most common type of poultry in the world, and is prepared as food in a wide variety of ways, varying by region and culture.- History :...
and mashed potatoes"; Isner said later that he was so hungry he could have eaten "12 Big Macs
Big Mac
The Big Mac is a hamburger sold by McDonald's, an international fast food restaurant chain. It is one of the company's signature products...
", but reported that drinking coconut water
Coconut water
Coconut water is the clear liquid inside young coconuts . As the fruit matures, the coconut water is gradually replaced by the coconut meat and air. A very young coconut has very little meat; the meat that it has is very tender, almost a gel...
helped him rehydrate and avoid cramping as he had experienced in the past. He slept for less than four hours before arising. Mahut also slept for only a few hours, and had a cold bath and a massage
Massage
Massage is the manipulation of superficial and deeper layers of muscle and connective tissue to enhance function, aid in the healing process, and promote relaxation and well-being. The word comes from the French massage "friction of kneading", or from Arabic massa meaning "to touch, feel or handle"...
. The next morning, the BBC reported that Mahut had been practising and Andy Murray informed them that Isner had been on a treadmill before play resumed.
The match was resumed on , and both players continued to dominate their service games. At 68–69, 30–15, Mahut netted a drop shot
Drop shot
A drop shot in tennis is slicing, putting a backspin on the ball just over the net. A good drop shot travels such that the opponent is unable to run fast enough to retrieve it....
that would likely have won the point. Isner, far back in the court at the time, later said that he wouldn't have had the energy to chase after that shot. On the next point, Isner passed Mahut at the net with a difficult inside-out forehand from the middle of the court that landed just inside the line and the service box. This brought up Isner's fifth match point (and the first in the day) and his 14th break point of the match, which he converted with a down-the-line backhand passing shot. Thus, after 65 minutes of play on the 3rd day of the match, Isner won the deciding final set, 70–68.
Officials
The chair umpire throughout the match was the SwedishSweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
official Mohamed Lahyani. Lahyani said afterwards that he was so "gripped by the amazing match" that his concentration stayed solid and he did not think about eating or going to the toilet. On the second day of the match, two groups of 14 linespeople and four groups of 28 ballboys and ballgirls
Ballboy
Ballboy are a four piece indie band from Edinburgh, Scotland. Formed in the late 1990s, the band have released five albums between 2001 and 2008.-Biography:...
were used in a rotation. At the end of the match, the umpire announced the score incorrectly, accidentally switching the scores of the two tie-break sets.
Scoreboard failure
On the second day of play, the courtside scoreboardScoreboard
A scoreboard is a large board for publicly displaying the score in a game or match. Most levels of sport from high school and above use at least one scoreboard for keeping score, measuring time, and displaying statistics. Scoreboards in the past used a mechanical clock and numeral cards to...
stood still at 47–47 and later went dark. IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
programmers said it was only programmed to go to 47–47 but would be fixed by the next day. The online scoreboard at the official website lasted slightly longer: At 50–50 it was reset to 0–0. Users were asked to "please add 50 to the Isner/Mahut game score". An IBM programmer worked on the scoring system
Hotfix
A hotfix was originally the term applied to software patches that were applied to live i.e. still running systems. Similar use of the terms can be seen in hot swappable disk drives...
until to accommodate the match's scores for the next day, although it would have again malfunctioned had the match gone beyond 25 more games.
Special recognition
Immediately after the match, both players and the umpire were presented with a crystal bowl and champagne flutes by Tim HenmanTim Henman
Timothy Henry "Tim" Henman OBE is a retired English professional tennis player and former British Number One. Henman played a serve-and-volley style of tennis that suited the grass courts of Wimbledon. He was the first player from the United Kingdom since Roger Taylor in the 1970s to reach the...
and Ann Haydon-Jones
Ann Haydon-Jones
Ann Haydon-Jones Ann Haydon-Jones Ann Haydon-Jones (born Adrianne Shirley Haydon on 7 October 1938 in Birmingham, United Kingdom, is a former table tennis and lawn tennis champion...
on behalf of the All England Club, as special recognition of the game. The players were then interviewed on court by John Inverdale
John Inverdale
John Inverdale , is an English radio and television broadcaster who works for the BBC, mainly covering sporting events.-Biography:...
, before a photocall for the press alongside one of the two Court 18 scoreboards showing the score. Mahut subsequently donated memorabilia from the match for display at the International Tennis Hall of Fame's Museum
International Tennis Hall of Fame
The International Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. The hall of fame and honors players and contributors to the sport of tennis and includes a museum, grass tennis courts, an indoor tennis facility, and a court tennis facility.-History:The hall of fame and...
in Newport, Rhode Island
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
.
On 14 July Isner and Mahut were jointly awarded the 2010 ESPY Award for "Best Record-Breaking Performance", beating fellow nominees Roger Federer
Roger Federer
Roger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...
and Usain Bolt
Usain Bolt
The Honourable Usain St. Leo Bolt, OJ, C.D. , is a Jamaican sprinter and a five-time World and three-time Olympic gold medalist. He is the world record and Olympic record holder in the 100 metres, the 200 metres and the 4×100 metres relay...
. Isner accepted the award in Los Angeles on behalf of both men.
In addition, the AELTC placed a plaque commerating the match at Court 18.
Players' subsequent schedules
As the winner, Isner advanced to the second round where he played Thiemo de BakkerThiemo de Bakker
Thiemo de Bakker is a Dutch tennis player, who is currently ranked 99th in the world, and is the second ranked Dutch tennis player...
on June 25 at on Court 5. The match was originally scheduled for June 24, but it was postponed due to the length of Isner's first round match against Mahut. De Bakker also had a lengthy first round match against Santiago Giraldo
Santiago Giraldo
Santiago Giraldo Salazar is a Colombian male tennis player from Pereira in Colombia. He plays on the ATP tour and represents Colombia in the Davis Cup competition.-ATP Tour:...
, winning by a score of 16–14 in the fifth set, but unlike Isner had an additional day off prior to his second round match. Isner lost to De Bakker 0–6, 3–6, 2–6 in just 74 minutes, the shortest men's Wimbledon match at that point in 2010, without serving a single ace. Isner was visibly exhausted and required medical treatment for neck and shoulder problems throughout the match.
Isner was also due to play a doubles match with his partner Sam Querrey
Sam Querrey
Sam Austin Querrey is a professional American tennis player from Thousand Oaks, California currently living in Las Vegas, Nevada. As of August 2010, he is the fourth-highest ranked American. His career high rank was #17, achieved on January 31, 2011. His height allows him to play with a strong...
on June 24 (against Michał Przysiężny and Dudi Sela
Dudi Sela
David "Dudi" Sela is an Israeli professional tennis player.Sela reached a career-high singles ranking of # 29 in July 2009. He is currently Israel's top men's singles player, ahead of Amir Weintraub.As a 17-year-old junior, he won the 2003 French Open boys' doubles championship with his doubles...
), but it was postponed to June 25. Isner's doubles match was tentatively scheduled as the second match of that day on Court 19 following another men's doubles match; however, they withdrew from the doubles because Isner had a blister on his toe. After being eliminated from the tournament, Isner said, "I'll watch sports, I'll take in the World Cup
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...
, I'll go fishing, I'll do whatever. Just anything away from the tennis court."
As for Mahut, his doubles match with partner Arnaud Clément
Arnaud Clément
Arnaud Clément is a professional tennis player from France. His best achievement is reaching the final of the 2001 Australian Open.-Career:Clément was born in Aix-en-Provence, and currently lives in Geneva, Switzerland...
against Colin Fleming
Colin Fleming
Colin Fleming is a British professional tennis player who lives in Linlithgow.He was selected for 2009 Great Britain Davis Cup team....
and Ken Skupski
Ken Skupski
Ken Skupski is a professional tennis player who lives in Liverpool, England. He is best known as a doubles player, most successfully partnering Colin Fleming. Having played college tennis at the Louisiana State University, he turned professional in 2007...
started late in the evening on June 24 (also on Court 18); the match was suspended after Mahut and Clément lost the first set. On June 25, Mahut/Clément – Fleming/Skupski was scheduled as the fourth match on Court 18 because Clément had a third-round singles match on Centre Court against Roger Federer
Roger Federer
Roger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...
. Because the match between Daniel Brands
Daniel Brands
Daniel Brands is a German professional tennis player. His career high rank was No. 66, achieved on July 5, 2010.- 2008 :...
and Victor Hănescu
Victor Hanescu
Victor Hănescu is a Romanian tennis player. He achieved his career high rank of no. 26 on July 6, 2009.- Professional career :...
lasted almost 3 hours, 30 minutes and ended around 8:45 pm local time, the doubles match was postponed again; it was re-scheduled as the first match on Court 14 on June 26. On resumption, Fleming/Skupski defeated Mahut/Clément, 7–6(4), 6–4, 3–6, 7–6(4).
In terms of subsequent meetings between the two; their next meeting after the match came at the ITF world mixed team championships, 2011 Hopman Cup
2011 Hopman Cup
-Serbia vs. Kazakhstan: -Belgium vs. Kazakhstan: -Serbia vs. Australia: -Australia vs. Kazakhstan: -Serbia vs. Belgium: -Standings:...
exhibition in Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
. The American broke in the opening game to record a straight sets win. In a twist of fate the pair's first competitive rematch happened at the 2011 Wimbledon Championships
2011 Wimbledon Championships
The 2011 Wimbledon Championships took place at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, England, from 20 June to 3 July 2011. It was the 125th edition of the championships, and the third Grand Slam tournament of the year. It was played on grass courts and was part of the...
, again in the first round. In that match, held on the new Court No. 3, Isner defeated Mahut in straight sets 7–6(4), 6–2, 7–6(6) in 2 hours and 3 minutes.
Reaction
Former players and commentators have called the match historic and unlikely to happen again; many also praised both participants. John McEnroeJohn McEnroe
John Patrick McEnroe, Jr. is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player from the United States. During his career, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles , nine Grand Slam men's doubles titles, and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title...
said, "This is the greatest advertisement for our sport. It makes me proud to be a part of it. We often don't get the respect we deserve in tennis for the athletic demands it places on players, but this should push that respect way up".
Other players, former players, officials, media commentators and fans also praised the behaviour of both players. Roger Federer
Roger Federer
Roger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...
said of the match, "It's so impressive to see. I mean, I was watching this. I don't know if I was crying or laughing. It was too much". Federer also added, "This is absolutely amazing. [...] This is beyond anything". Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic is a Serbian professional tennis player who has been ranked world no. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals since 4 July 2011. He has won four Grand Slam singles titles: the 2008 and 2011 Australian Open, the 2011 Wimbledon Championships, and the 2011 US Open...
extolled both players, saying, "You have to give them credit, both of them. Whoever wins today, I think both of them are winners".
Sports Illustrateds Jon Wertheim said that the victory might give Isner a self-esteem boost. McEnroe speculated, however, that the match might have shortened Isner and Mahut's careers by six months. A sports surgeon
Sports medicine
Sports medicine is a branch of medicine that deals with physical fitness, treatment and prevention of injuries related to sports and exercise...
said the players had risked dehydration
Dehydration
In physiology and medicine, dehydration is defined as the excessive loss of body fluid. It is literally the removal of water from an object; however, in physiological terms, it entails a deficiency of fluid within an organism...
, hyperthermia
Hyperthermia
Hyperthermia is an elevated body temperature due to failed thermoregulation. Hyperthermia occurs when the body produces or absorbs more heat than it can dissipate...
, and kidney damage
Nephropathy
Nephropathy refers to damage to or disease of the kidney. An older term for this is nephrosis.-Causes:Causes of nephropathy include administration of analgesics, xanthine oxidase deficiency, and long-term exposure to lead or its salts...
during the long match, and that one or both might suffer "some sort of injury or persistent problem over the next six months [...] shoulder problems, tendonitis
Tendonitis
Tendinitis , meaning inflammation of a tendon , is a type of tendinopathy often confused with the more common tendinosis, which has similar symptoms but requires different treatment...
, and recurrent knee problems", as well as the inability to "get into a groove" mentally for up to a year.
The chorus of Dan Bern
Dan Bern
Dan Bern is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, novelist and painter. His music is often compared to that of Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie, Bruce Springsteen, Phil Ochs and Elvis Costello....
's song about the match concludes with the scores of the five sets: "six-four, three-six, six-seven, seven-six, seventy-sixtyeight". An a capella performance of "Isner & Mahut" recorded in 2010 appears on Bern's album "Live in New York".
Records
The match set several tennis records, including:- Longest match (11 hours, 5 minutes).
- Longest set (the fifth set required 8 hours, 11 minutes).
- Most games in a set (138 in the fifth set).
- Most games in a match (183).
- Most acesAce (tennis)In tennis, an ace is a legal serve that is not touched by the receiver, winning the point.In professional tennis, aces are generally seen on a player's first serve, where the server can strike the ball with maximum force and take more chances with ball placement .The most common placement of an ace...
in a match by one player (Isner, 113). - Total aces in a match (Mahut's 103 aces, the second highest number by a player in a match, brought the total to 216).
- Consecutive service games held (168: 84 for each player).
- Most games won by both winning player (92) and losing player (91) in a match.
- Most points won in a match (Mahut, 502).
The previous record for games played in a match was the 122-game 1973 Davis Cup
1973 Davis Cup
The 1973 Davis Cup was the 62nd edition of the most important tournament between national teams in men's tennis. 53 teams would enter the competition, 31 in the Europe Zone, 12 in the Americas Zone, and 10 in the Eastern Zone....
match in which the United States team of Stan Smith
Stan Smith
Stanley Roger "Stan" Smith is a former American tennis player and two time Grand Slam singles champion who also, with his partner Bob Lutz, formed one of the most successful doubles teams of all time. Together, they won many major titles all over the world...
and Erik Van Dillen
Erik Van Dillen
Erik Van Dillen was an American male professional tennis player.Van Dillen won a single career title, the 1973 Nottingham Open Singles title, defeating Frew McMillan .-External links:*...
defeated the Chile
Chile Davis Cup team
The Chile Davis Cup Team represents Chile in Davis Cup tennis tournament and is governed by Chile Tennis Federation. The team is currently captained by former Chilean tennis player Hans Gildemeister.-History:...
team of Patricio Cornejo
Patricio Cornejo
Patricio Cornejo is a retired Chilean professional tennis player of the 1970s. He competed at the 1975 Davis Cup with Jaime Fillol and played the longest Davis Cup rubber in terms of games, eventually losing to Stan Smith/Erik Van Dillen of the 9–7, 39–37, 6–8, 1–6, 3–6 in the 1973 American Zone...
and Jaime Fillol
Jaime Fillol
Jaime Fillol is a former tennis player from Chile. He played amateur and professional tennis in the 1960s and 1970s.Fillol was ranked as high as world number 14 in singles on the ATP Rankings and number 82 in doubles .In the Open era , Fillol won seven singles titles and 15 doubles titles...
7–9, 37–39, 8–6, 6–1, 6–3. The previous record for most games in a singles match was the 112-game 1969 match in which Pancho Gonzales
Pancho Gonzales
Ricardo Alonso González , generally known as Richard "Pancho" Gonzales was an American tennis player. He was the world no. 1 professional tennis player for an unequalled eight years in the 1950s and early 1960s...
defeated Charlie Pasarell
Charlie Pasarell
Charlie Pasarell, Jr. is a former Puerto Rican tennis player and commentator...
22–24, 1–6, 16–14, 6–3, 11–9, also in the first round at Wimbledon. The singles record since the introduction of the tie-break was the 2003 Australian Open
Australian Open
The Australian Open is the only Grand Slam tennis tournament held in the southern hemisphere. The tournament was held for the first time in 1905 and was last contested on grass in 1987. Since 1972 the Australian Open has been held in Melbourne, Victoria. In 1988, the tournament became a hard court...
quarter-final match, in which Andy Roddick
Andy Roddick
Andrew Stephen "Andy" Roddick is an American professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. He is currently the second highest-ranked American player, behind Mardy Fish....
and Younes El Aynaoui
Younes El Aynaoui
Younes El Aynaoui is a professional tennis player from Morocco.He is a five-time singles winner on the ATP Tour and reached his career-high singles ranking of No. 14 in 2003, at the age of 31. His long career has been plagued by injuries and he did not play competitive tennis between September...
played 83 games; Roddick won 4–6, 7–6(5), 4–6, 6–4, 21–19.
The previous official record for duration was set at the 2004 French Open
2004 French Open
The 2004 French Open was the 103rd edition of the tournament. Gastón Gaudio became the first men's Open Era Grand Slam title winner to save match points in the final; the last time that had happened was 70 years earlier. Gaudio also became the first Argentine man since Guillermo Vilas to win a...
when Fabrice Santoro
Fabrice Santoro
Fabrice Vetea Santoro is a retired French professional male tennis player from Tahiti. Though not counted among the top ranked players, he had an unusually long professional career – with many of his accomplishments coming toward the end of his career – and he is popular among spectators and other...
defeated Arnaud Clément
Arnaud Clément
Arnaud Clément is a professional tennis player from France. His best achievement is reaching the final of the 2001 Australian Open.-Career:Clément was born in Aix-en-Provence, and currently lives in Geneva, Switzerland...
6–4, 6–3, 6–7(5), 3–6, 16–14, in 6 hours, 33 minutes. The unofficial record of 6 hours, 40 minutes, was set on 2009, when Chris Eaton
Chris Eaton (tennis)
Christopher Philip Eaton is an English tennis player. He reached his career-high singles ranking of #319 in June, 2009 and his career-high doubles ranking of #365 in February, 2009 and is the current British #9...
defeated James Ward
James Ward (tennis)
James Ward is a British tennis player, and British no. 2 behind Andy Murray. As of 22 August 2011 he is ranked 139 in the ATP singles rankings and 234 in doubles...
6–3, 6–2, 6–7(3), 2–6, 21–19 in a playoff match to represent the Great Britain Davis Cup team
Great Britain Davis Cup team
The Great Britain Davis Cup team represents the United Kingdom in Davis Cup tennis competition and is controlled by the Lawn Tennis Association. The United Kingdom played in the very first International Lawn Tennis Challenge...
in a 2009 Davis Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I second round tie versus Ukraine. Isner-Mahut's fifth set alone lasted some 90 minutes longer than the previous longest match. Indeed, even that portion of the fifth set played on the second day was about half an hour longer than the previous longest match, so it also broke the record for the longest play in a single day.
John Isner served his 79th ace to take the final set to 39–38 with serve. This surpassed Ivo Karlović
Ivo Karlovic
Ivo Karlović is a Croatian tennis player. He has won four ATP singles titles: three in 2007 and one in 2008. Karlović is the tallest player ever on the ATP Tour at 208 cm . He is a serve-and-volleyer, Karlovic holds the fastest serve recorded in professional tennis, measured at 251 km/h ...
's 78 aces that he served on 2009 in a Davis Cup
Davis Cup
The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation and is contested between teams of players from competing countries in a knock-out format. The competition began in 1900 as a challenge between Britain and the United States. By...
match against Radek Štěpánek
Radek Štepánek
Radek Štěpánek is a professional tennis player from the Czech Republic.-Career:Štěpánek turned professional in 1997. He started on tour as a doubles specialist, winning 12 ATP titles. Since 2002, Štěpánek has focused on being a better singles player while still playing top-level doubles...
. In all, Isner served 113 aces; Mahut also surpassed the previous record with 103 aces.
The length of the match exceeded the total playing time of Serena Williams
Serena Williams
Serena Jameka Williams is an American professional tennis player and a former world no. 1. The Women's Tennis Association has ranked her world no. 1 in singles on five separate occasions. She became the world no. 1 for the first time on July 8, 2002 and regained this ranking for the fifth time on...
in every round combined in winning the previous year's Ladies Wimbledon title. She played for less than ten hours in the entire tournament.
Coverage
In the United Kingdom, the match was featured live in part on BBC OneBBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
, BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
and BBC HD
BBC HD
BBC HD is a high-definition television network provided by the BBC. The service was initially run as a trial from 15 May 2006 until becoming a full service on 1 December 2007...
, which were all the television channels which the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
used to cover Wimbledon. The match was broadcast live in its entirety on the BBC Red Button.
Commentating throughout were Ronald McIntosh and Greg Rusedski
Greg Rusedski
Gregory "Greg" Rusedski is a British Canadian former tennis player who turned professional in 1991 and played until his retirement on 7 April 2007, at the age of 33...
. It was McIntosh's first ever Wimbledon match.
In the United States, ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
and sibling channel ESPN2
ESPN2
ESPN2 is an American sports cable television network owned by ESPN. The channel debuted on October 1, 1993.Originally nicknamed "the deuce," ESPN2 was initially branded as a network for a younger generation of sports fans featuring edgier graphics as well as extreme sports like motocross,...
telecast the match.
Score
Session times
All times in British Summer TimeBritish Summer Time
Western European Summer Time is a summer daylight saving time scheme, 1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. It is used in the following places:* the Canary Islands* Portugal * Ireland...
(UTC+1)
Tuesday 22 June 2010
- 6:13 pm – Match begins
- 9:07 pm – Match suspended at two sets all, with 174 minutes elapsed.
Wednesday 23 June 2010
- 2:05 pm – Match resumes
- 5:45 pm – Match sets record for longest in history
- 9:10 pm – Match suspended a second time with the score tied at 59–59 in the fifth and deciding set; elapsed match time was exactly 10 hours.
Thursday 24 June 2010
- 3:43 pm – Match continued on court 18.
- 4:48 pm – Match ended in favour of John Isner, who won the final set 70–68. The match lasted eleven hours and five minutes.
Detailed statistics
- From Wimbledon's official website
| Isner | Statistic | Mahut |
|---|---|---|
| 361 of 491 = 74% | 1st serve % | 328 of 489 = 67% |
| 10 | Double faults | 21 |
| 52 | Unforced errors | 39 |
| 292 of 361 = 81% | Winning % on 1st serve | 284 of 328 = 87% |
| 82 of 130 = 63% | Winning % on 2nd serve | 101 of 161 = 63% |
| 246 | Winners | 244 |
| 104 of 489 = 21% | Receiving points won | 117 of 491 = 24% |
| 2 of 14 = 14% | Break point conversions | 1 of 3 = 33% |
| 97 of 144 = 67% | Net approaches | 111 of 155 = 72% |
| 478 | Total points | 502 |
| 92 | Games won | 91 |
| 113 | Aces | 103 |
| 143 mph | Fastest serve speed | 128 mph |
| 123 mph | Average 1st serve speed | 118 mph |
| 112 mph | Average 2nd serve speed | 101 mph |
| Total points include double faults by the opponent. Unforced errors include double faults. | ||