Longest tennis match records

This article details longest tennis 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 four majors, the US Open, Australian Open and Wimbledon (since 2019) use the tiebreak in the final set, while the French Open, through 2021, was the only major 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. A 2022 rule change now requires every Grand Slam tournament, even the Olympics (since 2021), to use the tiebreak in the final set.

A plaque commemorating the Isner–Mahut match on Court 18 at Wimbledon.

All competitions edit

Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# P# DNQ A Z# PO G S B NMS NTI P NH
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (P#) preliminary round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (Z#) Davis/Fed Cup Zonal Group (with number indication) or (PO) play-off; (G) gold, (S) silver or (B) bronze Olympic/Paralympic medal; (NMS) not a Masters tournament; (NTI) not a Tier I tournament; (P) postponed; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.

Overall edit

Longest matches by duration edit

John Isner (top) defeated Nicolas Mahut (bottom) 6–4, 3–6, 6–7(7–9), 7–6(7–3), 70–68 in a record 11 hours and 5 minutes

Only two professional competitive matches have lasted longer than seven hours and 14 matches have lasted longer than six hours.[1]

# Duration
(hh:mm)
Winner Loser Event Round Score
1 11:05
(3 days)
  John Isner   Nicolas Mahut 2010 Wimbledon 1R 6–4, 3–6, 6–7(7–9), 7–6(7–3), 70–68[2]
2 07:01   Czech Republic
(Tomáš Berdych
Lukáš Rosol)
  Switzerland
(Stanislas Wawrinka
Marco Chiudinelli)
2013 Davis Cup 1R 6–4, 5–7, 6–4, 6–7(3–7), 24–22[3]
3 06:43   Argentina
(Leonardo Mayer)
  Brazil
(João Souza)
2015 Davis Cup 1R 7–6(7–4), 7–6(7–5), 5–7, 5–7, 15–13
4 06:36   Kevin Anderson   John Isner 2018 Wimbledon SF 7–6(8–6), 6–7(5–7), 6–7(9–11), 6–4, 26–24[4]
5 06:33
(2 days)
  Fabrice Santoro   Arnaud Clément 2004 French Open 1R 6–4, 6–3, 6–7(5–7), 3–6, 16–14
6 06:31   Vicki Nelson   Jean Hepner 1984 Central Fidelity
Banks International
1R 6–4, 7–6(13–11)[5]
7 06:22   United States
(John McEnroe)
  Sweden
(Mats Wilander)
1982 Davis Cup QF 9–7, 6–2, 15–17, 3–6, 8–6
(before tiebreak era)
8 06:21   Germany
(Boris Becker)
  United States
(John McEnroe)
1987 Davis Cup PO 4–6, 15–13, 8–10, 6–2, 6–2
(before tiebreak era)
9 06:20   Argentina
(Lucas Arnold Ker
David Nalbandian)
  Russia
(Yevgeny Kafelnikov
Marat Safin)
2002 Davis Cup SF 6–4, 6–4, 5–7, 3–6, 19–17
10 06:15   Argentina
(José Luis Clerc)
  United States
(John McEnroe)
1980 Davis Cup F 6–3, 6–2, 4–6, 13–11
(before tiebreak era)
11 06:09
(2 days)
  Mark Knowles
  Daniel Nestor
  Simon Aspelin
  Todd Perry
2006 Wimbledon QF 5–7, 6–3, 6–7(5–7), 6–3, 23–21
12 06:05   Lorenzo Giustino   Corentin Moutet 2020 French Open 1R 0–6, 7–6(9–7), 7–6(7–3), 2–6, 18–16[6]
13 06:04   Austria
(Horst Skoff)
  Sweden
(Mats Wilander)
1989 Davis Cup QF 6–7(5–7), 7–6(9–7), 1–6, 6–4, 9–7
14 06:01   Canada
(Harry Fritz)
  Venezuela
(Jorge Andrew)
1982 Davis Cup SF 16–14, 11–9, 9–11, 4–6, 11–9
(before tiebreak era)


Longest matches by number of games edit

# No. of games Winner Loser Event Round Score
1 183   John Isner   Nicolas Mahut 2010 Wimbledon 1R 6–4, 3–6, 6–7(7–9), 7–6(7–3), 70–68[2]
2 122   United States
(Stan Smith
Erik van Dillen)
  Chile
(Patricio Cornejo
Jaime Fillol)
1973 Davis Cup F 7–9, 37–39, 8–6, 6–1, 6–3[7]
3 112   Pancho Gonzales   Charlie Pasarell 1969 Wimbledon 1R 22–24, 1–6, 16–14, 6–3, 11–9.[8]
4 105   Marcelo Lara
  Joaquín Loyo-Mayo
  Manuel Santana
  Luis-Augusto García
1966 US Open 3R 10–12, 24–22, 11–9, 3–6, 6–2[9]
  Cliff Drysdale
  Ray Moore
  Roy Emerson
  Ron Barnes
1967 US Open QF 29–31, 8–6, 3–6, 8–6, 6–2[9]
6 102   Marcelo Melo
  André Sá
  Paul Hanley
  Kevin Ullyett
2007 Wimbledon 2R 5–7, 7–6(7–4), 4–6, 7–6(9–7), 28–26[10]
7 100   Franklin Robbins   Donald Dell 1969 US Open 1R 22–20, 9–7, 6–8, 8–10, 6–4[11]
  Harry Fritz   Jorge Andrew 1982 Davis Cup SF 16–14, 11–9, 9–11, 4–6, 11–9[3]
9 99   Kevin Anderson   John Isner 2018 Wimbledon SF 7–6(8–6), 6–7(5–7), 6–7(9–11), 6–4, 26–24[4]
10 98   Nikola Pilić
  Gene Scott
  Cliff Richey
  Torben Ulrich
1966 Wimbledon 1R 19–21, 12–10, 6–4, 4–6, 9–7[10]

Men's singles edit

  Winner of the match also won the tournament.

The Isner–Mahut match at the 2010 Wimbledon Championships holds the record for the longest tennis match both in time and games played. It lasted for 11 hours and 5 minutes.[12]

# Duration
(hh:mm)
Winner Loser Event Round Score
1 11:05
(3 days)
  John Isner   Nicolas Mahut 2010 Wimbledon 1R 6–4, 3–6, 6–7(7–9), 7–6(7–3), 70–68[2]
2 06:43   Argentina
(Leonardo Mayer)
  Brazil
(João Souza)
2015 Davis Cup 1R 7–6(7–4), 7–6(7–5), 5–7, 5–7, 15–13
3 06:36   Kevin Anderson   John Isner 2018 Wimbledon SF 7–6(8–6), 6–7(5–7), 6–7(9–11), 6–4, 26–24[4]
4 06:33
(2 days)
  Fabrice Santoro   Arnaud Clément 2004 French Open 1R 6–4, 6–3, 6–7(5–7), 3–6, 16–14
5 06:22   United States
(John McEnroe)
  Sweden
(Mats Wilander)
1982 Davis Cup QF 9–7, 6–2, 15–17, 3–6, 8–6
(before tiebreak era)
6 06:21   Germany
(Boris Becker)
  United States
(John McEnroe)
1987 Davis Cup PO 4–6, 15–13, 8–10, 6–2, 6–2
(before tiebreak era)
7 06:15   Argentina
(José Luis Clerc)
  United States
(John McEnroe)
1980 Davis Cup F 6–3, 6–2, 4–6, 14–12
(before tiebreak era)
8 06:05
(2 days)
  Lorenzo Giustino   Corentin Moutet 2020 French Open 1R 0–6, 7–6(9–7), 7–6(7–3), 2–6, 18–16
9 06:04   Austria
(Horst Skoff)
  Sweden
(Mats Wilander)
1989 Davis Cup QF 6–7(5–7), 7–6(9–7), 1–6, 6–4, 9–7
10 06:01   Canada
(Harry Fritz)
  Venezuela
(Jorge Andrew)
1982 Davis Cup SF 16–14, 11–9, 9–11, 4–6, 11–9
(before tiebreak era)

Women's singles edit

The longest women's match (by time) took place at a tournament in Richmond, Virginia, in 1984, when Vicki Nelson took 6 hours, 31 minutes to defeat Jean Hepner 6–4, 7–6(13–11). The match featured a 29-minute, 643-shot rally, the longest in professional tennis history, though no video exists of this point.[13][14]

Unlike men's singles matches, where Grand Slam events are still played over the best of five sets, all women's matches are now played as the best of three sets. All matches since January 1, 2019 have been checked, but there are likely to be many more from earlier years which have not yet been recognised, especially as qualifying matches in ITF tournaments before that date would normally have been played over the best of three tie-break sets.

Where different sources give durations for a particular match, the shortest elapsed time will be the one noted below.

  Winner of the match also won the tournament.
# Duration
(hh:mm)
Winner Loser Event Round Score
1 06:31   Vicki Nelson   Jean Hepner 1984 Central Fidelity Banks International 1R 6–4, 7–6(13–11)[14]
2 05:03   Maria Elena Camerin   Monica Niculescu 2 Oct 2009 ITF Athens Open QF 6–4, 6–7(3–7), 7–6(7–5)
3 04:56   Amina Anshba   Laura Pigossi 7 Apr 2021 Córdoba ITF Pro Circuit W25 1R 7–5, 3–6, 7–5[15][16]
4[a] 04:54   Sandra Samir   Tijana Sretenović 27 Aug 2022 Cairo ITF Pro Circuit W15 SF 6–7(2–7), 7–6(8–6), 6–1[18][19]
5 04:49   Hanna Chang   Ulrikke Eikeri 6 May 2021 Naples ITF Pro Circuit W25 2R 7–6(12–10), 4–6, 6–4
6[b] 04:46   Anastasia Iamachkine   Justina Gonzalez Daniele 29 Nov 2022 Buenos Aires ITF Pro Circuit W15 1R 7–5, 6–7(6–8), 7–6(7–5)[21][22]
7 04:44   Francesca Schiavone   Svetlana Kuznetsova 2011 Australian Open 4R 6–4, 1–6, 16–14[23]
8[c] 04:43   Amira Badawi   Louise Brunskog 19 Aug 2022 Cairo ITF Pro Circuit W15 QF 7–5, 6–7(5–7), 7–6(7–3)[25][26]
9 04:42   Kurumi Nara   Monica Niculescu 2010 French Open Q3 4–6, 7–6(7–3), 10–8
9[d] 04:42   Diletta Cherubini   Tina Smith 21 Sep 2023 Santa Margherita di Pula ITF Pro Circuit W25 2R 7–6(7–4), 4–6, 7–6(7–6)[28][29]

The longest match consisting of two standard sets and a match tie-break was played in the second qualifying round of a $25,000 ITF tournament in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on January 9, 2023. Valentina Mutilba defeated Luciana Blatter 6–7(7–9), 7–6(12–10), [10–7]. The official ITF live scoring data recorded the duration as three hours and 44 minutes,[30] but SofaScore and TNNS both recorded three minutes less.[31][32]

  1. ^ The fourth-longest match listed above was recorded in the ITF live scoring data as taking 5 hours and 4 minutes.[17] SofaScore recorded 4 hours and 54 minutes and TNNS recorded 4 hours and 55 minutes. The shortest of these has been included in this table.
  2. ^ The sixth-longest match listed above was recorded in the ITF live scoring data as taking 4 hours and 50 minutes.[20] SofaScore recorded 4 hours and 46 minutes and TNNS recorded 4 hours and 47 minutes. The shortest of these has been included in this table.
  3. ^ The eighth-longest match listed above was recorded in the ITF live scoring data as taking 4 hours and 53 minutes.[24] The shorter time, recorded by both SofaScore and TNNS, has been included in this table.
  4. ^ The ninth equal-longest match listed above was recorded in the ITF live scoring data as taking 4 hours and 47 minutes.[27] SofaScore recorded 4 hours and 42 minutes and TNNS recorded 4 hours and 43 minutes. The shortest of these has been included in this table.

Doubles edit

Longest doubles matches by time
# Duration
(hh:mm)
Winner Loser Event Round Score
1 07:01   Czech Republic
(Tomáš Berdych
Lukáš Rosol)
  Switzerland
(Stanislas Wawrinka
Marco Chiudinelli)
2013 Davis Cup 1R 6–4, 5–7, 6–4, 6–7(3–7), 24–22
2 06:20   Argentina
(Lucas Arnold Ker
David Nalbandian)
  Russia
(Yevgeny Kafelnikov
Marat Safin)
2002 Davis Cup SF 6–4, 6–4, 5–7, 3–6, 19–17
Longest doubles matches by number of games
# # of Games Winner Loser Event Round Score
Before tiebreak era
1 122   United States
(Stan Smith
Erik van Dillen)
  Chile
(Patricio Cornejo
Jaime Fillol)
1973 Davis Cup Z# 7–9, 37–39, 8–6, 6–1, 6–3[7]
During tiebreak era
1 102   Marcelo Melo
  André Sá
  Paul Hanley
  Kevin Ullyett
2007 Wimbledon 2R 5–7, 7–6(7–4), 4–6, 7–6(9–7), 28–26[10]

Australian Open edit

Men's singles edit

Longest match by time played
2012 final, 5 hours and 53 minutes
  Novak Djokovic 5 6 6 65 7
  Rafael Nadal 7 4 2 77 5
Also the longest grand slam singles final in the Open Era.
Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1970 quarterfinal, 93 games
  Dennis Ralston 19 20 4 6
  John Newcombe 17 18 6 3
Longest singles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction[33]
1927, 71 games
  Gerald Patterson 3 6 3 18 6
  John Hawkes 6 4 6 16 3
This was the longest Grand Slam final in games played until the Federer v Roddick final at Wimbledon in 2009.[34]
Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring
2017 first round, 84 games
  Ivo Karlović 66 3 7 6 22
  Horacio Zeballos 78 6 5 2 20

Men's doubles edit

Longest doubles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1966, 87 games
  Roy Emerson
  Fred Stolle
7 6 6 14 12
  John Newcombe
  Tony Roche
9 3 8 12 10
Longest doubles final match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring
2000, 71 games
  Ellis Ferreira
  Rick Leach
6 3 6 3 18
  Wayne Black
  Andrew Kratzmann
4 6 3 6 16

Women's singles edit

 
Francesca Schiavone won the longest ever match at a women's Grand Slam event in 4 hours 44 minutes.
Longest match by time played
2011 fourth round, 4 hours and 44 minutes
  Francesca Schiavone 6 1 16
  Svetlana Kuznetsova 4 6 14
Also the longest women's match in a Grand Slam in the Open Era,[23] and the second-longest women's match in the Open Era.[35]
Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring
1996 quarterfinals, 48 games
  Chanda Rubin 6 2 16
  Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 4 6 14
2018 third round, 48 games
  Simona Halep 4 6 15
  Lauren Davis 6 4 13
Longest singles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction[36]
1956, 33 games
  Mary Carter Reitano 3 6 9
  Thelma Coyne Long 6 2 7

Women's doubles edit

Longest doubles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1926, 37 games
  Esna Boyd Robertson
  Meryl O'Hara Wood
6 6 8
  Daphne Akhurst Cozens
  Marjorie Cox Crawford
3 8 6

Mixed doubles edit

Longest mixed doubles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1933, 45 games
  Marjorie Crawford
  Jack Crawford
3 7 13
  Marjorie Gladman Van Ryn
  Ellsworth Vines
6 5 11
Longest mixed doubles final match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring
1992, 39 games
  Nicole Provis
  Mark Woodforde
6 4 11
  Arantxa Sánchez Vicario
  Todd Woodbridge
3 6 9

French Open edit

 
Arnaud Clément (pictured) lost the longest ever match at the French Open to Fabrice Santoro in 6 hours 33 minutes. He expressed his disappointment at losing the match which until 2010 held the record for the longest ever match stating: "Frankly, I don't give a damn ... What world record? Do I get a medal? If I'm not getting anything, frankly, I'm not interested. It doesn't count."[37]

Men's singles edit

Longest match by time played[38]
2004 first round, 6 hours and 33 minutes
  Fabrice Santoro 6 6 65 3 16
  Arnaud Clément 4 3 77 6 14
Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction[38]
1957 first round, 83 games
  Bob Mark 13 6 6 8 10
  Antal Jancsó 15 3 8 6 8
Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring
2012 second round, 76 games
  Paul-Henri Mathieu 62 6 6 3 18
  John Isner 77 4 4 6 16
Longest singles final match by time played[38]
1982, 4 hours and 42 minutes
  Mats Wilander 1 78 6 6
  Guillermo Vilas 6 66 0 4
Longest singles final by games, before introduction of the tiebreaker[38]
1927, 61 games
  René Lacoste 6 4 5 6 11
  Bill Tilden 4 6 7 3 9

Men's doubles edit

Longest men's doubles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction[39]
1934, 63 games
  Jean Borotra
  Jacques Brugnon
11 6 2 4 9
  Jack Crawford
  Vivian McGrath
9 3 6 6 7
1971, 63 games
  Arthur Ashe
  Marty Riessen
6 4 6 6 11
  Tom Gorman
  Stan Smith
8 6 3 4 9

Women's singles edit

Longest match by time played[40]
1995, 4 hours and 7 minutes
  Virginie Buisson 63 7 6
  Noëlle van Lottum 77 5 2
Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1972 third round, 56 games
  Kerry Melville Reid 9 4 16
  Pam Teeguarden 7 6 14
Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring
1991 second round, 46 games
  Linda Harvey-Wild 79 67 11
  Laura Gildemeister 67 79 9
Longest singles final match by number of games
1996, 40 games
  Steffi Graf 6 64 10
  Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 3 77 8

Women's doubles edit

Longest doubles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction[41]
1955, 50 games
  Beverly Baker Fleitz
  Darlene Hard
7 6 13
  Shirley Brasher Bloomer
  Patricia Ward Hales
5 8 11
This is also the longest women's doubles match in terms of games that has occurred at The French Open.[41]

Mixed doubles edit

Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction[42]
1956, 38 games
  Nicola Pietrangeli
  Shirley Brasher Bloomer
9 6 6
  Robert Howe
  Lorraine Coghlan Robinson
7 8 2

Wimbledon edit

Men's singles edit

The 2019 Wimbledon Men's final between Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic lasted 4 hours 57 minutes and is the third longest singles final by time played.

Longest match by time and number of games[43]
2010 first round, 183 games, 11 hours and 5 minutes.
  John Isner 6 3 67 77 70
  Nicolas Mahut 4 6 79 63 68
This is the longest professional tennis match ever played.[43]
Longest singles final match by time played[44]
2019, 4 hours and 57 minutes
  Novak Djokovic 77 1 77 4 137
  Roger Federer 65 6 64 6 123
Longest singles final match by number of games[45]
2009, 77 games
  Roger Federer 5 78 77 3 16
  Andy Roddick 7 66 65 6 14
This match also had the longest final set in a Grand Slam final by games.[45]
Longest singles semifinal match by time and number of games[46]
2018, 99 games, 6 hours and 36 minutes
  Kevin Anderson 78 65 69 6 26
  John Isner 66 77 711 4 24

Men's doubles edit

Longest doubles final match by time played
1992, 5 hours and 1 minute
  John McEnroe
  Michael Stich
5 77 3 77 19
  Jim Grabb
  Richey Reneberg
7 65 6 65 17
Also the longest doubles final by number of games (83).
Longest match by time played
2006 quarterfinals, 6 hours and 9 minutes
  Mark Knowles
  Daniel Nestor
5 6 65 6 23
  Simon Aspelin
  Todd Perry
7 3 77 3 21
Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction[10]
1966 first round, 98 games
  Nikola Pilić
  Gene Scott
19 12 6 4 9
  Cliff Richey
  Torben Ulrich
21 10 4 6 7
Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring[10]
2007 third round 102 games
  Marcelo Melo
  André Sá
5 77 4 79 28
  Paul Hanley
  Kevin Ullyett
7 64 6 67 26
Longest doubles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1968, 70 games
  John Newcombe
  Tony Roche
3 8 5 14 6
  Ken Rosewall
  Fred Stolle
6 6 7 12 3

Women's singles edit

Longest match by time played[47]
1995 second round, 3 hours and 45 minutes
  Chanda Rubin 77 65 17
  Patricia Hy-Boulais 64 77 15
Note: The Bud Collins History of Tennis incorrectly lists this match as having occurred in 1996
Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1948 second round, 54 games
  Alice Weiwers 8 14 6
  Rita Anderson 10 12 4
Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring
1995 second round, 58 games
  Chanda Rubin 77 65 17
  Patricia Hy-Boulais 64 77 15
Longest singles final match by time played[48]
2005, 2 hours and 45 minutes
  Venus Williams 4 77 9
  Lindsay Davenport 6 64 7
Longest singles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction[49]
1970, 46 games
  Margaret Court 14 11
  Billie Jean King 12 9

Women's doubles edit

Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1933 first round, 48 games
  Pat Brazier
  Christabel Wheatcroft
11 5 9
  Mildred Nonweiler
  Betty Soames
9 7 7
Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1933 final, 38 games
  Simonne Mathieu
  Elizabeth Ryan
6 9 6
  Freda James
  Billie Yorke
2 11 4
1967 final, 38 games
  Billie Jean King
  Rosemary Casals
9 6 6
  Maria Bueno
  Nancy Richey Gunter
11 4 2

Mixed doubles edit

Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1967 quarterfinals, 56 games
  Ken Fletcher
  Margaret Court
6 7 16
  Alex Metreveli
  Anna Dmitrieva
8 5 14
Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1949 final, 48 games
  Eric Sturgess
  Sheila Piercey Summers
9 9 7
  John Bromwich
  Louise Brough Clapp
7 11 5

US Open edit

 
Stefan Edberg's (pictured) 1992 victory over Michael Chang 6–7(3–7), 7–5, 7–6(7–3), 5–7, 6–4 in 5 hours 26 minutes remains the longest match at the US Open.

Men's singles edit

Longest match by time played[50]
1992, 5 hours and 26 minutes
  Stefan Edberg 63 7 77 5 6
  Michael Chang 77 5 63 7 4
Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1969 first round, 100 games
  Franklin Robbins 22 9 6 8 6
  Donald Dell 20 7 8 10 4
Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring
1979 second round, 63 games
  John Lloyd 5 6 7 7 7
  Paul McNamee 7 7 5 6 6
Longest singles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1949, 67 games
  Pancho Gonzales 16 2 6 6 6
  Ted Schroeder 18 6 1 2 4
Longest singles final match by time played[51]
1988, 4 hours and 54 minutes
  Mats Wilander 6 4 6 5 6
  Ivan Lendl 4 6 3 7 4
2012, 4 hours and 54 minutes
  Andy Murray 712 7 2 3 6
  Novak Djokovic 610 5 6 6 2

Men's doubles edit

Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1966 third round, 105 games
  Marcelo Lara
  Joaquín Loyo-Mayo
10 24 11 3 6
  Manuel Santana
  Luis-Augusto García
12 22 9 6 2
1967 quarterfinals, 105 games
  Cliff Drysdale
  Ray Moore
29 8 3 8 6
  Roy Emerson
  Ron Barnes
31 6 6 6 2
Longest doubles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1946, 74 games
  Gardnar Mulloy
  William Talbert
3 6 2 6 20
  Frank Guernsey
  Don McNeill
6 4 6 3 18

Women's singles edit

Longest match by time played[52]
2021, 3 hours and 40 minutes
  Rebeka Masarova 69 77 711
  Ana Bogdan 711 62 69
2021, 3 hours and 40 minutes[53]
  Elise Mertens 3 77 77
  Rebecca Peterson 6 65 65
Note: The above two matches were played on the same day (31 August) and started at almost exactly the same time.[54][55]

Best-of-five-sets system: edit

Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1898 challenge round, 51 games
  Juliette Atkinson 6 5 6 2 7
  Marion Jones 3 7 4 6 5

Best-of-three-sets system: edit

Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring
1985 quarterfinal, 39 games
  Steffi Graf 7 6 7
  Pam Shriver 6 7 6

Women's doubles edit

Longest doubles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction[56]
1920, 43 games
  Eleanor Goss
  Marion Zinderstein
13 4 6
  Helen Baker
  Eleanor Tennant
11 6 3

Mixed doubles edit

Longest mixed doubles final match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1959, 48 games
  Neale Fraser
  Margaret Osborne duPont
7 13 6
  Bob Mark
  Janet Hopps Adkisson
5 15 2

Summer Olympics edit

Overall edit

Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction[57]
1920 semifinals, 76 games (6 hrs?) (See Note)
  Gordon Lowe 14 8 5 6 6
  Augustos Zerlendis 12 10 7 4 4
Note: World Tennis Magazine state that some media outlets have reported [this match] lasting approximately six hours.[58] This match therefore could have been the longest Olympic tennis match in terms of match duration as well as being the longest Olympic tennis match in terms of number of games.
Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring[57][59][60]
2012 second round, 66 games (3 h 57 min)
  Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6 3 25
  Milos Raonic 3 6 23
Note: Match played on 31 July 2012. Beating the previous record of 61 games set during the five set doubles final in 1988. The third set also set a record for most games played in a set at an Olympics, beating the previous record set at the 2004 Summer Olympics by Fernando González and Taylor Dent, 30 games, by 18 games.
Longest match by time played, after the tiebreaker introduction[57]
1992 first round, 5 h and 53 min (56 games)
  Boris Becker 3 77 5 77 6
  Christian Ruud 6 62 7 62 3
Note: Tsonga vs. Raonic above (best-of-three-sets system) was longer by number of games.

Men's singles edit

Best-of-three-sets system:
Longest match by time played[61][62]
2012 semifinals, 4 h and 26 min (58 games)
  Roger Federer 3 77 19
  Juan Martín del Potro 6 65 17
Note: Match played on 3 August 2012. This is also the longest best-of-three-sets men's singles match ever played in the Open era (with or without a tiebreaker in the final set).
Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring[57][59][60]
2012 second round, 66 games (3 h 57 min)
  Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6 3 25
  Milos Raonic 3 6 23
Note: Match played on 31 July 2012. Beating the previous record of 61 games set during the five set doubles final in 1988. The third set also set a record for most games played in a set at an Olympics, beating the previous record set at the 2004 Summer Olympics by Fernando González and Taylor Dent, 30 games, by 18 games.
Best-of-five-sets system:
Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction[57]
1920 semifinals, 76 games (6 hrs?) (See Note)
  Gordon Lowe 14 8 5 6 6
  Augustos Zerlendis 12 10 7 4 4
Note: World Tennis Magazine state that some media outlets have reported [this match] lasting approximately six hours.[58] This match therefore could have been the longest Olympic tennis match in terms of match duration as well as being the longest Olympic tennis match in terms of number of games.
Longest match by time played, after the tiebreaker introduction[57]
1992 first round, 5 h and 53 min (56 games)
  Boris Becker 3 77 5 77 6
  Christian Ruud 6 62 7 62 3
Note: Tsonga vs. Raonic above (best-of-three-sets system) was longer by number of games.

Men's doubles edit

Longest match by time played[57]
2008 semifinals, 4 h and 44 min (59 games)
  Simon Aspelin
  Thomas Johansson
78 4 19
  Arnaud Clément
  Michaël Llodra
66 6 17
Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring[63]
2012 second round, 63 games
  Marcelo Melo
  Bruno Soares
1 6 24
  Tomáš Berdych
  Radek Štěpánek
6 4 22
Note: This match was played on 1 August 2012, only a day after Jo-Wilfried Tsonga vs. Milos Raonic set the record of 66 games in a best-of-three-sets match.

Women's singles edit

Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring
1988 second round, 42 games
  Larisa Savchenko 63 77 9
  Sara Gomer 77 63 7
Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring
2004 first round, 42 games
  Paola Suárez 77 65 9
  Nathalie Dechy 61 77 7

Women's doubles edit

Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring[57]
1988 first round, 63 games
  Carling Bassett-Seguso
  Jill Hetherington
710 5 20
  Mercedes Paz
  Gabriela Sabatini
68 7 18

Mixed doubles edit

Longest match by number of games, before the tiebreaker introduction
1924 second round, 42 games
  Hilda Wallis
  Edwin McCrea
9 4 9
  Nora Polley
  Sydney Jacob
7 6 7

Davis Cup and Fed Cup edit

Davis Cup edit

Longest rubber by duration[64]
2015 World Group first round, Argentina vs. Brazil. 6 hours and 43 minutes
  Leonardo Mayer 77 77 5 5 15
  João Souza 64 65 7 7 13
Longest rubber by number of games (singles)[3]
1982 American Zone semifinal, Canada vs. Venezuela, 100 games
  Harry Fritz 16 11 9 4 11
  Jorge Andrew 14 9 11 6 9
Longest rubber by duration[65]
2013 World Group first round, Switzerland vs Czech Republic, 7 hours and 1 minute
  Stanislas Wawrinka
  Marco Chiudinelli
4 7 4 7 22
  Tomáš Berdych
  Lukáš Rosol
6 5 6 6 24
Longest rubber by number of games (doubles)[3]
Doubles of the 1973 American Zone Final, Chile vs. USA, 122 games
  Stan Smith
  Erik van Dillen
7 37 8 6 6
  Patricio Cornejo
  Jaime Fillol
9 39 6 1 3
The 39–37 second set is the longest set in Davis Cup history (76 games).

Fed Cup edit

Longest rubber by duration[66]
2016 World Group second round, Netherlands vs. Russia, 4 hours
  Richèl Hogenkamp 77 5 10
  Svetlana Kuznetsova 64 7 8
Longest rubber by number of games (singles)[67]
1997 World Group I first round, France vs. Japan, 54 games
  Nathalie Tauziat 7 4 17
  Naoko Sawamatsu 5 6 15
Longest rubber by duration[67]
2001 Europe/Africa Group I deciding match, Israel vs. Luxembourg, 3 hours and 35 minutes
  Tzipi Obziler
  Hila Rosen
3 7 10
  Anne Kremer
  Claudine Schaul
6 6 8
Longest rubber by number of games (doubles)[67]
1968 World Group semifinal, Australia vs. Great Britain, 51 games
  Margaret Court
  Kerry Melville
9 3 14
  Winnie Shaw
  Virginia Wade
7 6 12

Tour Finals edit

ATP Tour Finals edit

Best-of-five-sets system: edit

Longest singles final match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring[68]
1996, 58 games
  Pete Sampras 3 77 77 611 6
  Boris Becker 6 65 64 713 4
Longest match by number of games, using tiebreaker scoring[69]
1986 round robin, 57 games
  Guy Forget
  Yannick Noah
6 6 3 7 7
  Mike de Palmer
  Gary Donnelly
7 4 6 6 5
1987 round robin, 57 games[69]
  Paul Annacone
  Christo van Rensburg
7 7 2 4 7
  Peter Doohan
  Laurie Warder
6 6 6 6 6

Best-of-three-sets system: edit

Longest match by time played[70]
2016 semi final, 3 hours 38 minutes
  Andy Murray 5 77 711
  Milos Raonic 7 65 69
This was the longest match since 1991 when times were first recorded.

WTA Tour Finals edit

Best-of-five-sets system: edit

Longest match by time played[71][72]
1990 final, 3 hours and 47 minutes
  Monica Seles 6 5 3 6 6
  Gabriela Sabatini 4 7 6 4 2

Best-of-three-sets system: edit

Longest match by time played[73]
2012 round robin, 3 hours and 29 minutes
  Agnieszka Radwańska 66 7 6
  Sara Errani 78 5 4
Longest match by number of games[73]
2017 round robin, 37 games
  Venus Williams 7 63 7
  Jeļena Ostapenko 5 77 5

See also edit

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External links edit