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LONDON – It took 99 games and three break-offs in five sets that lasted more than 6 hours, but South African Kevin Anderson finally reached the final at Wimbledon on Friday.
Anderson won the longest match of the Center Court got a chance to try to collect his first Grand Slam championship, beating the American John Isner 7-6 (6), 6-7 (5), 6-7 (9), 6-4, 26-24 in 6 hours, "36-minute Marathon
The fifth set lasted nearly three hours while the semi-final became a test of Endurance more than talent. Anderson, the No. 8 seed, finally earned the mandatory duty break, with the help of a point where the right-hander spilled on his buttocks, bounced off his feet and took hit a left shot. [19659002] Anderson had break points at 7-7, 10-10, and 17-17 before finally getting the break – pulling a massive roar from the crowd. He then converted his first match point when Isner sent a wide shot.
The 99 games made the longest Grand Slam semifinal match of the open era, beating the previous mark of 90 by Rod Laver and Tony Roche in the 1969 Australian Open
This will be the second Grand Slam final for Anderson, who will be the first South African to reach the Wimbledon final since 1921. He reached the US Open final last year before losing to [1]. Rafael Nadal
The match broke Wimbledon's semifinal records for the number of games (the previous record was 72) as well as the duration – exceeding the previous mark of 1 hour 52 minutes.
| Anderson | Isner | |
|---|---|---|
| won | 51 | 48 |
| As | 49 | 53 |
| Double Fault | 4 | 6 |
| Breaks From service | 4/11 | 2/5 |
| Winners | 118 | 129 |
| Non-corrected errors | 24 | 59 |
| 1st service pct. | 71% | 75% |
| Fastest service | 137 mph | 142 mph |
| Avg. 1st dose | 124.4 mph | 124.9 mph |
| Total prices. | 298 | 271 |
Surprisingly, it was not the longest match in the history of Wimbledon. Isner was also in 2010, beating Nicolas Mahut 70-68 in the fifth set after 11 hours, 5 minutes – the longest match of all tournaments.
Isner also broke the record in a Wimbledon tournament. His 53rd on Friday gave him 214 for the fortnight, beating the 213 mark set by champion Goran Ivanisevic in 2001.
Not to be outdone, Anderson had 49 clean aces in the match.
Anderson, 32, will be in contention for the title on Sunday against the winner of the match between Nadal, world No. 1, and triple champion Novak Djokovic. Due to the length of the first match, this semifinal will be played with the roof closed.
Nadal has 17 major titles, including two at the All England Club. Djokovic owns 12 Slam trophies, three of Wimbledon
Anderson also played an extended fifth set in the quarterfinals, eliminating eight-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer 13-11 in the final set.
With the Friday tied 13-13, the fans screamed after a spectator shouted: on the guys, we want to see Rafa! "
Isner was trying to end the longest drought of the major title – 58 majors – for American men in the history of tennis.The last American to win a Grand Slam title was Andy Roddick at the United States Open 2003.
The Isner-Anderson match was the first men's Grand Slam semifinal to surpass the decisive aggregate since the Open at Roland Garros., And the first in Wimbledon since 2001.
In addition to playing for the Wimbledon title, there was a lot of financial incentive for both players.The winner of the match was guaranteed $ 1.5 million, based Final result: Isner returns home with $ 743,322
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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