If you’re a true tennis fan, you know how incredible it is when the game goes to a third set. If you’ve ever seen a match go to a tense fifth set, you know how thrilling and nerve-wracking that experience can be. Players’ nerves are clearly on edge, the crowd is getting into it, and the rallies are getting longer and more ferocious. Sometimes it feels like a show and you want the match to last forever.
However, any tennis match would seem to drag on interminably if you’re not a strong enthusiast of the sport. Watching a little yellow ball bounce from side to side can grow boring if you aren’t interested. What you’re saying makes sense to me.
Though you may not share their passion for the sport, you have to give tennis players credit for pushing the physical limitations of the human body by playing for hours on end.
A tennis match may theoretically go on forever, but in practise, it often takes between one and two hours for a match to go three sets, and somewhat longer for a match to reach five sets. As the game progresses, players become fatigued and make careless decisions, ultimately resulting in one player’s triumph. Still, there have been instances of players engaging in marathon contests where neither side was willing to concede.
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5) John McEnroe Vs. Mats Wilander, 1982 Davis Cup Time: 6:22
This is the third attempt, and the success rate is high. John McEnroe wins the longest match he’s ever played. Over the course of 6 hours and 22 minutes, John McEnroe prevailed over Mats Wilander in the Davis Cup match between the USA and Sweden in 1982. The final score was 9-7,6-2,15-17,3-6,8-6. You may probably guess that this match took place before the use of tie-breaks became standard in tennis.
Considering the quarterfinal score was 2–2, this was one of the most tense games ever played. McEnroe and Wilander fought it out to the finish like a pair of gladiators, and McEnroe ultimately prevailed. The U.S. gained steam and continued on to the finals, where they defeated France 4-1 to claim victory.
4) The 2004 French Open Match Between Fabrice Santoro Vs Arnaud Clement Time: 6:33
In 2004, at the French Open, this match ended in a tie. Fabrice Santoro and Arnaud Clement, both of whom are French, played each other in this encounter. Santoro, who called himself a “magician,” defeated Clement in five sets, 6-4, 6-3, 6-7(5-7), 3-6, 16-14.
The match took place in the opening round, and Santoro went on to win another match in five sets before being eliminated in the third round. The clash set a record for the longest tennis match ever played at the time, and it stood for the next six years. It’s still the longest match in Roland Garros history.
3) Kevin Anderson vs. John Isner, 2018 Wimbledon, Time: 6:36
Most recently, in 2018, a match between big servers Kevin Anderson and John Isner made it to the semifinals at Wimbledon. Anderson of South Africa won a marathon 6-hour, 36-minute match by scores of 7-6(8-6),6-7(5-7),6-7(9-11),6-4,26-24. It’s the longest Grand Slam semi-final ever played.
It’s interesting to note that both players began their careers by competing in collegiate tennis. Anderson attended Illinois, whereas Isner attended Georgia. Anderson advanced to the finals, where he was ultimately defeated by Novak Djokovic.
While Isner did not prevail this time around, he still holds the record for the longest tennis match ever played.
2) The 2015 Davis Cup Match Leonardo Mayer Vs Joao Souza Time: 6:43
Davis Cup encounter between long-time rivals Brazil and Argentina was the second longest match ever played. With a final score of 7-6(7-4),7-6(7-5),5-7,5-7,15-13, Leonardo Mayer of Argentina defeated Joao Souza of Brazil in 2015. The duration of this match sets a new record for a match played on clay. It also holds the record for the longest singles match in Davis Cup history.
Brazil’s 2–1 victory against Argentina qualified as a first round Davis Cup match. With 9 match points, Mayer eventually prevailed. In the end, Federico Dellionis’ victory over Thomaz Bellucci sealed victory for Argentina. Argentina advanced to the semi-finals before losing to Belgium 3–2.
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1) 2010 at Wimbledon, John Isner Vs Nicholas Mahut. Time: 11:05
It lasted a total of 11 hours and five minutes, making it the longest tennis match in history. On June 22, 2010, on Court 18 at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, a match for the first round of the main draw got underway. Natural light was so scarce that the match had to be called off at the end of the fourth set.
The next day, they picked up where they left off, but once again, lack of daylight forced them to halt play. On June 24, the match was resumed and completed with a final score of 6-4,3-6,6-7(7-9),7-6(7-3),70-68, in favour of Isner.
The score in the deciding game was 70 to 68, thus yes. If only the fifth set had lasted 8 hours and 11 minutes, it would have surpassed the duration of the second-longest match on this list.
It was the longest tennis match ever played, lasting 11 hours, 5 minutes and featuring a total of 183 games. They both surpassed 100 aces, which was the previous record held by Karlovic.
