Sunday, May 20th, 2012
The woman’s singles was also drama free – Venus Williams, Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin didn’t do any of that troublesome set dropping.
But two players must have come close to dropping dead. It was either an extraordinary battle of iron wills, or proof that the men’s game on grass can be full of mind numbing grunting power serves you just can’t return. When John Isner finally crawled off court after his 10 hour match with Nicolas Mahut he’d smacked down 98 aces in the longest match in Grand Slam history. They resume at the score of 6-4, 3-6, 6-7, 7-6, 59-59 tomorrow. What it’s done to the 23rd’s seed sanity is more open to question.
It made Thiemo De Bakker’s 6-7 6-4 6-3 5-7 16-14 win over Santiago Giraldo look like a light stroll. Guess who Isner or Mahut plays next – you got it, Thiemo De Bakker, in an ice bath,awaits.