This article details longesttennis match records by duration or number of games. The 1970–1973 introduction of the tiebreak reduced the opportunity for such records to be broken. However, among the Grand Slams, the US Open, Australian Open and Wimbledon (since 2019) use the tiebreak in the final set, while the French Open remains the only Grand Slam to use the advantage set rules in the final set, which allows for an indefinite number of games until one player is ahead by two.
These encounters went beyond six hours.
Tennis is not an easy game. It is a battle of skill, technique and precision. The match goes on till one player wins a required number of points or a player gives up or retires in the middle of the court unable to carry on with an injury or fatigue.
This is exactly why matches played over a long duration have such an appeal. It keeps the spectators on the edge of their seats. This is exactly what we saw on January 30, 2022 when one of the all-time greats Rafael Nadal defeated Daniil Medvedev at the Australian Open 2022. The Spaniard won the final that lasted for 5 hours and 24 minutes. It also made Nadal the first tennis player to win 21 Grand Slam titles, surpassing the likes of Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
In spite of this, the match doesn’t even come close to the longest matches played in tennis history. Here are the top five tennis encounters that lasted for more than six hours.
The Five Longest Matches in Wimbledon History
1. John Isner v Nicolas Mahut 2010 – 11 hours 5 minutes
The longest tennis match of all time lasted for 11 hours and 5 minutes, and was a first-round clash at Wimbledon between American John Isner and Frenchman Nicolas Mahut in 2010. In fact, that epic contest lasted an incredible four hours and four minutes longer than any other in the history of professional tennis.
longest matches at wimbledon
John Isner can officially call himself the “Marathon Man” of tennis. The veteran has been through some intense battles. It is because of that he is on this list not just once but twice. This meeting with Frenchman Nicolas Mahut happened way before his showdown with Kevin Anderson. On top of that, unlike his on court bout in 2018 – this one in fact found him in the winners corner.
The game not only transcended minutes or hours but even days. The match that started on 22nd June 6:13 pm BST finished on 24th June at 4:47 pm. The only gaps imposed was because of the fading daylights. The final scoreline of the match was a never before seen 6-4,3-6,6-7,7-6,70-68. A record 183 games were played in total. The match broke many records worldwide. Such was its longevity that many referred to it as ‘the endless match’.
2. Kevin Anderson v John Isner 2018 – 6 hours 36 minutes
As you will discover, Anderson would have had his own reasons for feeling tired during his 2018 final appearance against Djokovic, as he had just come through an epic encounter with American Isner.
The men’s Wimbledon in 2018 saw two classic semi-final matches. While one was between Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, another saw Kevin Anderson clash with John Isner. Though all eyes were on the former, it was the latter which truly stole the spotlight.
It is the longest tennis match played in a semi-final in history till date. The match that reached its climax in the 49th game of the deciding set, which saw these two old college friends hugging it out in the end.
The final scoreline read 7-6,6-7,6-7,6-4, 26-24. Two gigantic players Anderson (6’8″) and Isner (6’10”) truly played a game at par with their astounding stature.
3. Marin Cilic v Sam Querrey 2012 – 5 hours 31 minutes
It took a long time to separate big-hitting duo Cilic and Querrey during their third-round match in 2012, with the former eventually coming through 7-6 6-4 6-7 6-7 17-15.
This all-American second-round battle held the honour of being the longest match ever played at Wimbledon for 21 years, with Holmes eventually winning the contest 5-7 6-4 7-6 4-6 14-12.
5. Novak Djokovic v Rafael Nadal 2018 – 5 hours 15 minutes
Djokovic and Nadal are two of the all-time greats of the game, winning a combined 39 Grand Slam titles during their respective careers, while they have met 58 times in total, with Djokovic edging the head-to-head record 30-28.
German tennis player Julia Görges began her professional sports career in 2005, reaching the worldwide ranking of top 100 in just three short years. This Wimbledon match was actually Julia’s first Grand Slam main-draw match victory, and she began playing in matches through the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) more often during the following year. Her opponent, Katarina Srebotnik, has had a rich career as well, soldiering on in spite of injury and often winning numerous titles per year.
Chanda Rubin vs. Patricia Hy-Boulais
Chanda Rubin, who made it into the sports Hall of Fame in 2013, had a long career filled with accomplishments before she retired. Despite sustaining a series of injuries, she ranked as high as the number 6 best tennis player worldwide. The third set of this match against Patricia alone lasted for two hours and four minutes, and both exhausted players just wanted to be done!
longest matches at wimbledon
Rainer Schüttler vs. Arnaud Clément
Rainer Schüttler began playing tennis at the young age or nine, eventually attaining a rank as high as number 5 in the professional tennis world! His opponent in this match, Arnaud Clément, achieved a ranking of number 10. Rainer also became the first German tennis player since Boris Becker to have made it to the fourth round in all Grand Slams.
Pancho Gonzales vs. Charlie Pasarell
One of the most interesting details about this match is that Pancho Gonzales was notably older than his younger and seemingly much stronger opponent, Charlie Pasarell. However, despite the crowds thinking that Charlie was sure to win, Pancho continued to push himself back from the brink of defeat time and time again until he finally won. Charlie Pasarell also reportedly seemed to be fading throughout the match and pulled less confident moves later in the game.
One of two epic matches to take place in 2018, this face-off between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal turned out to be a monumental victory for Novak, who had only returned to the playing court that January. He’d sustained an elbow injury for 18 long months before finally announcing halfway through 2017 that he was taking the rest of the season off to heal! His opponent, Rafael Nadal, has won 19 Grand Slam singles titles, which is the second most in the history of male players.
What was the longest ever Wimbledon match?
The longest ever Wimbledon match was also the longest match in grand slam history.
It took place during the first round of the 2010 men’s singles tournament and was between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut.
The two tennis players played on the tennis court for a total of eleven hours and five minutes, which saw their game span across three days.
During the game the two of them had secured two sets each, and the final set saw them play to a final score of 70-68.
The players and umpire were presented with a crystal bowl and champagne flutes following the match as special recognition for the length of the game.
What was the longest Wimbledon match last year?
The fourth longest match in tennis took place at Wimbledon 2018, and once again it involved John Isner.
The American was playing Kevin Anderson in the semi-final of the men’s singles tournament which ended up lasting six hours and thirty six minutes.
Once the game had ended the score was 7-6(8-6), 6-7(5-7), 6-7 (9-11), 6-4, 26-24.
The result led to Wimbledon organisers deciding to introduce a new tie-break rule this year to limit such long games.
Starting this year tie-breaks will be played at 12-12 in the final set, meaning the first player to reach seven points with an advantage of two or more points will be the winner of the match.
How did the players maintain their energy?
Andy Roddick is said to have delivered three boxes of pizza and mashed potatoes to Isner!
At 3.40pm on Thursday 24th June, the match once again recommenced. After an hour and seven minutes of play, the fifth set finally produced a victor with Isner winning 70-68. In total, the final set lasted 8 hours and 10 minutes! The new record now stood at 11 hours and five minutes over three days, and consisted of 183 games.
longest matches at wimbledon
Immediately after the match, Ann Jones and Tim Henman came onto court and presented both players with a 10-inch Tipperary Crystal Bowl and six Waterford Crystal Wimbledon champagne flutes.
The chair umpire, Mohamed Lahyani – who had sat through each day without a break – also received a 10-inch Tipperary Crystal Bowl, a Wimbledon tie and Wimbledon silver cufflinks.
Thank you for staying with this post “longest matches at wimbledon” until the end.
