A Cry Out for the 5th Set Tiebreaker

Nicolas Mahut after: the greatest match ever or just the most boring?

There are many occasion throughout the sporting year that fans are blinded by giant headlines and rapid fire highlight reels covering supposedly special dramatic developments. This is part and parcel of living in a 24/7 mass media culture that attempts to feed the insatiable appetites of its spectacle addicted viewers and readers.

For a few days earlier this summer at Wimbledon, much of the world’s sports eyes were fixated on the John Isner versus Nicolas Mahut marathon, a tiresome, over-hyped affair that lasted a record 11 hours and five minutes. Mercifully, the American pulled off two winners off the ground to break serve and finally come through 6-4 3-6 6-7 (7), 7-6 (3), 70-68.

Yes, in case you had forgotten, the fifth set score was 70-68. 138 games. The equivalent of 15 or more normal sets. Or put another way, the number games you’d be likely to play in 3 or more five set matches.

The biggest accomplishment: to stay standing.

How could this happen except in the bizarre and convoluted world of professional tennis? Was this the greatest match of all time, as some, including Mahut, called…