It was four years ago when one of the latest recorded finishes occurred in professional tennis.
On October 5, 2006, Benjamin Becker of Germany and Jiri Novak of the Czech Republic concluded their round of 16 match at the Japan Open in Tokyo at 3:24 am local time, Becker emerging victorious by a 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(4) margin. Becker saved a match point while serving at 5-6 in the third set in the latest recorded finish to a singles match in ATP history at the time. Months later, the record was broken by Andreas Seppi of Italy and Bobby Reynolds of the United States, who concluded a match at 3:34 am at the 2007 Australian Open. A year later, Lleyton Hewitt and Marcos Baghdatis play until 4:34 am at the 2008 Australian Open, setting the new standard.
In the newly updated and re-released second edition of authoritative record book and tennis encyclopedia THE BUD COLLINS HISTORY OF TENNIS ($35.95, New Chapter Press, www.NewChapterMedia.com), tennis Hall of Famer Bud Collins compiles the latest recorded finishes at all four major tournaments and of all-time, documented below.
Latest Finishes At Major Championships
(US Open and Australian Open are only majors with night play)
Australian Open
4:34 am Lleyton Hewitt d. Marcos Baghdatis 4-6, 7-5, 7-5, 6-7 (4), 6-3 in the 2008 third round
3:34 am Andreas Seppi d. Bobby Reynolds 6-1, 6-7 (4), 6-7 (5), 7-6 (3), 6-3 in the 2007 first round
French Open
9:56 pm Gael Monfils of France and Fabio Fognini of Italy had their second-round match suspended due to darkness with the score knotted at 6-2, 6-4, 5-7, 4-6, 5-5. Fognini wins the completed fifth set 9-7 the next day
Wimbledon
10:59 pm Novak Djokovic d. Olivier Rochus 4-6, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 in 2010 first round
10:39 pm Andy Murray d. Stanislas Wawrinka 2-6, 6-3, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 in 2009 fourth round (first-ever Wimbledon night match and the first complete match played under the retractable roof on Centre Court)
US Open
2:26 am Mats Wilander d. Mikael Pernfors 6-1, 6-7 (4), 6-7 (5), 7-6 (3), 6-3 in the 1993 second round
2:14 am Younes El Aynaoui d. Wayne Ferreira 3-6, 7-5, 7-5, 7-6 (3) in the 2002 fourth round
The latest recorded start of a match at a major tournament came in 1987, when shortly after midnight, Gabriela Sabatini and Beverly Bowes took the court for a first round match, following a four-hour Boris Becker-Tim Wilkison match. Sabatini won 6-3, 6-3 in a match that ended at 1:30 am
Other Late Finishes
2:51 am Nicolas Massu and Fernando Gonzalez of Chile defeated Nicolas Kiefer and Rainer Schuettler of Germany 6-2, 4-6, 3-6, 6-7 (7), 6-4 in the gold medal match in men’s doubles at the 2004 Olympic Games in four hours and 43 minutes
3:24 am Benjamin Becker of Germany defeated Jiri Novak of the Czech Republic 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (4) in the round of 16, AIG Open in Tokyo, Oct. 5, 2006