24:22! Reilly Opelka wins record tie-break against John Isner
Reilly Opelka (ATP No. 23) made it to the final of the ATP tournament in Dallas by beating John Isner. And won the longest tiebreak in ATP history.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Feb 13, 2022, 08:37 am
Reilly won the semifinals of the service artists 7: 6 (7) and 7: 6 (22), winning the longest tiebreak in ATP history since records were set in 1990.
He fended off a total of ten set points in the second round, but then used the eighth match point with the mini-break to make it 24:22. The 26 points previously went to the server. "At some point it was 21 both... I had never experienced that. But if something like that should happen, it would be in this match."
The 24-year-old said something true: The last twelve sets in the matchup between Opelka and Isner all had to be played in a tie-break.
Opelka hit 39 aces, a tour record in a two-set match; it's safe to assume he would have broken Ivo Karlovic's record (once 45 aces in three sets) in a possible third set.
At the future level, a tiebreak went out 36:34
Crazy: A 20:18, the previous ATP record, had already happened seven times.
However, Opelka and Isner did not break the record for the longest men's tie-break ever: Michael Mortensen/Jan Gunnarson won in their first round match in Wimbledon in 1985 with 26:24 against John Frawley/Victor Pecci.
At Challenger level, the record is 22:20, set in the match between Evgeny Karlovsky and Guillermo Olaso in 2018, ironically also in Dallas.
In 2013 Benjamin Balleret even won a tiebreak with 36:34 against Guillaume Couillard on the (then) Future level.
Opelka meets Jenson Brooksby in the final
In the final, Opelka meets compatriot Jenson Brooksby, who in turn had to fight hard and fend off four match points in the 6: 4, 6: 7 (5) and 7: 6 (5) against Marcos Giron. Brooksby is in his first final at ATP level, only in his eighth appearance in a main draw.
Opelka's comment afterwards: Isner is his favorite player, while the variable Brooksby is "probably the least favorite opponent I can play against."