Well, it would take a special series of circumstances for us to do a live blog of a 1st Round Wimbledon match between two guys that nobody had ever heard of 24 hours ago. However, this is kinda sorta a special series of circumstances. It's time for a Yoders' Live Blog of the finish (knock on wood) of this historic match as coverage picks up at 9:30 AM. It could go 1o minutes, 10 games, 10 hours, or 10 days... but we'll be there to cover the action... at least until I need a nap. Check with us as we pick up the most insane sporting event that any human being alive has ever seen at 59-59 in the 5th set! Refresh your page every few minutes for updates throughout the match!11:59 - As if we couldn't have one more bizarre moment, the crowd is booing the photo op at the scoreboard. The grace and class of these two men is only outdone by their sheer will and determination on the court the past 3 days. 70-68 in the fifth set in perhaps the most remarkable sports event any of us have ever seen. Thanks for joining us for our live coverage of the Isner-Mahut live blog of the last 20 games of this epic. We'll see you further on up the road!
11:56 - Final match time is 11'5'' It looks like both are receiving some sort of gift bag. Only in England I suppose. Isner gives props to the crowd that soaks it up, Isner is all class here talking about the honor of playing in this match with Mahut. Mahut is speechless as the crowd gives him a deserved applause. Mahut talks about the moment being painful but the amazing feeling of playing in the match and calls Isner a champion. In his words it's the greatest match in the greatest tournament ever.
11:50 - The ovation continues to get louder for these two warriors. The final score reads 6-4, 3-6, 6-7, 7-6, 70-68. And just like that, an innocent first round match at Wimbledon will forever go down in the history books. Now the All England Club is presenting both players and the umpire with a memento. They better put a plaque there, rename the court, or at least have them buried at Court 18.
11:48 - AND IT'S OVER!!! ISNER WITH A BACKHAND WINNER DOWN THE LINE!!! 70-68 in the final set as both players embrace at the net. Isner has his hands on his head as he can't believe that it's finally over! Mahut is devastated sitting in his chair - what a shame that somebody had to lose this insane game of tennis.
11:47 - MY GOD! MATCH POINT FOR ISNER AT 69-68!!! What pressure! What a moment!!
11:46 - Mishit from Mahut and Isner is two points away from winning the most epic duel in tennis history. But, Mahut's great serve and volley knots us up at 30-30. Slovakia puts in a third against Italy that should say arivaderchi to the defending champs.
11:44 - 2-1 Slovakia as Italy has pulled a goal back, as of now they need 1 more goal to advance. Isner again just misses a shot along the line. 0-15.
11:41 - Can Isner's serve bail him out again? Service winner. 30-30. Service winner 40-30. Mahut's return goes into the net. Game Isner. 69-68. I think the 2014 World Cup might begin before this match ends. We're now at the 11 hour mark. 11 hours these two guys have been playing tennis against each other.
11:40 - Here we go. 0-30 Mahut on Isner's serve at 68-68. The biggest chance in about 16 hours to break serve. Ace Isner.
11:37 - Isner gets a point off the net. The crowd comes alive as it's 0-15 in the 136th game.
11:35 - Game Isner.
11:31 - 67-66 Isner. Here's the stats for that '39 Cricket Match which is the longest game in sports history. Thankfully, it was the last ever timeless test. You're guess is as good as mine as to what it means - by the way, Italy on its way out as they trail Slovakia 2-0, right now it's them and Paraguay going through but a 1-0 win from NZ sends them instead of the Slovaks. Oh, and Mahut holds at love for the 1,567th time. 67-67.
11:27 - 66-66. Gilbert's advice is to focus on your serve and to keep taking care of it and winning one point at a time. PMac argues that these guys just don't return well. After almost 100 games without a break of serve, I would call that expert analysis.
11:25 - Game Isner. I'm convinced that these guys are some sort of zombie robots. That makes the most logical sense at this point, right? Maybe this tennis match will keep going and distract the attention of the world to clear the way for the ultimate Martian invasion that is now sure to come.
11:23 - At least we're 33 hours short of the longest sporting event of all-time, a 1939 cricket match between England and South Africa that took 13 days and ended when the England team had a boat to catch. This is the territory we are entering folks.
11:20 - A real chance for Isner at 0-15 in the 130th game but his passing shot lands just wide. 15-15 on our way to 65-65. Should have been 0-30. And a jumping smash from Mahut makes it 40-15.
11:18 - Elsewhere Italy still trailing 1-0 and Par/NZ tied at love. Excuse me if I switch my soccer and tennis terminology, it's one of those days... 65-64 Isner. Highlights of the Queen's visit - who wants to bet that Prince Charles takes over before this game ends?
11:15 - Well. At least Isner got to 15 that game. 64-64. Gilbert talking about hating this ending quickly today. Quick for these two would be at 81-81. Neither player has been close to breaking serve besides the deuce in the first game today at 59-59. We've played almost an entire set already today people.
11:13 - PMac is feelign the break right here. That's like feeling a Cubs World Series victory.
11:11 - 64-63 Isner as Tsonga wins 10-8 in the 5th, what in God's name is he thinking?
11:09 - The 165th straight game in which serve has been held - and it's at love again. 63-63. Yes, these two men have played 165 straight games without a break of serve. What happens if this match never ends? Do they both get a Wimbledon title? Does tournament tennis just halt? Does the United Nations ban tennis for the sake of humanity?
11:07 - Game Isner, at this point we've nearly tripled the longest 5th set in history. Tsonga and Dolgopolov are currently at 9-8 in the 5th set. I wonder if they're going to try to break the record. Isner's coach talks about staying patiently aggressive. I think Job had less patience than these two guys. 63-62.
11:04 - Combine two great servers with two poor returners and you end up with this madness. There have been international wars that have been shorter than this tennis match.
11:02 - Seriously folks, we have had 2 breaks of serve in 168 games. Meanwhile, Mahut is up 30-0 on his serve. At this point, these guys are just serving aces and holding serve on muscle memory. 62-62. We've played 6 games today in just about 20 minutes. At this rate, we will be at 122-122 at the end of the day. My actual over under is 113-113, I mean, they can't keep up this pace, can they?
11:00 - Pam Shriver is trying to set a record for most times a broadcaster complains about her seat. Isner charges towards the net but misses a volley. 15-0 Isner. PMac is right that Isner needs to be more aggressive.
10:58 - Game Isner. 62-61. I need a bathroom break.
10:57 - Isner 61. Mahut 61. Storm: "These two have no quit in them." You think? Actually, I think Mahut is ready to throw in the towel - he's a Frenchman after all. Seriously though, it's like Isner saves energy on Mahut's serve just so he can rocket his own serve. Isner has to spend some energy on Mahut's serve or else he will never break. 15-15
10:54 - A mistake from Mahut and Isner smashes at the net to go up 0-15... 15-15 on a Mahut ace. 30-15 on, you guessed it, a Mahut ace! Hannah Storm: "We better settle in here." That's why they pay her the big bucks - although I guess I shouldn't say anything or else I'll be suspended by ESPN.
10:51 - And now Isner holds at love on another ace. 61-60. Anybody thinking that this is ending in like 10 or 15 minutes is completely out of their minds. I'm telling you - they played 119 games yesterday and there were 3 GAMES THAT HAD BREAK POINT CHANCES!! We've crossed over from sports to Stephen King land.
10:50 - By the way, we're tied at 220 winners a piece as Isner goes to 30-0 up in the 121st game.
10:48 - Mahut rips a forehand to take a 15-0 lead on his serve. By the way, we could have ran the last 3 Indy 500s in the time it has taken to play this game. I also have the lame joke count with Shriver taking the early lead with "that's the best backhand I've seen at 60-59" as Mahut holds at love. 60-60.
10:46 - Isner's 100th ace gets him out of jail as Mahut goes long on the next point's return. 60-59 Isner. I feel like I'm watching a World War I siege.
10:44 - Isner's inside-out forehand goes into the net. 40-30 in the 119th game. Next point sees the same thing happen and we're at Deuce.
10:43 - Isner's 99th ace gets him a 30-15 lead. He looks spent already. Maybe he's just trying to draw Mahut into a false sense of confidence.
10:42 - Here we go!! Finally!! 59 games all in the final set and Isner double faults to kick us off. Ruh roh.
10:41 - We're about ready to go. By the way, I love the enthusiasm that Brad Gilbert has for this match and the sport - he's a great balance with Patrick McEnroe. Pam Shriver is giving us the play by play of Mahut rubbing his stomach - that's investigative reporting at its best folks!
10:39 - Has anyone noticed that John Isner is 6'9''? He's like the Randy Johnson of tennis. I predict that he'll serve 348 aces today. Still 1-0 Slovakia over Italy and 0-0 between PAR and NZ.
10:37 - Great. This is just what we need. A Dick Enberg montage. Didn't he retire at the NCAA tournament? At least it's not Rick Reilly.
10:34 - A huge ovation for Isner and Mahut. These guys look refreshed... too refreshed. I'm thinking that these two are actually clones. They've gotta be, right? What if Federer is a robot and we've just been fooled this whole time. Would that be bigger than the steroids scandal?
10:32 - These guys are building suspense like a Springsteen concert. They seriously need entrance music - can you imagine these two coming out to Eye of the Tiger, or at least Ric Flair's music? That would be sick.
10:28 - Isner serves first as we're awaiting the players' entrance. Amazingly, Mahut has had to hold serve 55 times in a row with the match on the line. I pray that I'll be able to take a bathroom break within the first 6 hours today.
10:24 - GOOOOOOOOLLLLLL!!!! SLOVAKIA 1 Italy 0! Whoa! De Rossi gives it away and a great finish from Vittek puts the defending champs in huge trouble. If results hold Paraguay and Slovakia go through.
10:18 - By the way, I'm not sure what basis McEnroe and Gilbert are using to say this game will be over quick - they played 118 games yesterday and had a break point in 3 GAMES!!! 3 out of 118!!! That means we're due for another break chance at 79-79. I think the apocalypse will hit before this game ends.
10:16 - Why do I think we'll see Skip Bayless hanging on the railing at Court 18 today just desperate to get on TV? And why do I think Rob Parker will be right behind him? Maybe Skip Bayless would be better than having to put up with the snarkiness of Hannah Storm yesterday.
10:13 - No score in each World Cup game. New Zealand is dressed as the All Blacks today. I'm anticipating one of them spear tackling someone with the ball, picking it up, running and diving into the goal and grounding the ball for a dramatic try.
10:11 - Both analysts predict a quick end within 5 games to today's game. Please if there is a God just don't let it go another 118.
10:09 - Great, Pam Shriver has been let back into her seat in the stadium and at the same time smugly tells us about her doubles victories at Wimbledon, at least it's not "Australia-hot" today, thanks Pam.
10:07 - I love that this match is finishing on the quaint Court 18... if it finishes.
10:05 - 5 minutes later and we're still seeing footage of the Queen leaving Wimbledon. The ESPN crew is fawning over her like MSNBC fawns over President Obama. I think Hannah Storm has a thrill running up her leg. Conveniently she is leaving before Mahut and Isner start up... maybe she knows something?
9:59 - The Queen is at Wimbledon for the first time since 1977??? My God, someone make sure Reggie Jackson isn't in the crowd!
9:56 - While the anthems play in the WC games, we'll make sure to keep an eye what happens in the Group F encounters where any combo of the 4 teams can advance to the next round. I really hope Italy goes down - why is it so easy to hate Italian soccer? At least Mahut hasn't given up like the French soccer team.... yet.
9:50 - The entire Guardian live blog is a must read to see what happens when a sportswriter starts to lose his mind. Again, I'm really starting to question this. Elsewhere on the family of networks is Doug Gottlieb's NBA draft preview, Andy Murray about ready to advance, and World Cup Pregames. WAIT! MY GOD! NO SKIP BAYLESS!!! I wondered what made this week feel like a piece of heaven on earth, now I know.
9:45 - Here's a quote from Xan Brooks' live blog yesterday from the UK Guardian. This was from 4:05 - keep in mind that Mahut and Isner still had 5 hours of tennis to play!!
The Isner-Mahut battle is a bizarre mix of the gripping and the deadly dull. It's tennis's equivalent of Waiting For Godot, in which two lowly journeymen comedians are forced to remain on an outside court until hell freezes over and the sun falls from the sky. Isner and Mahut are dying a thousand deaths out there on Court 18 and yet nobody cares, because they're watching the football. So the players stand out on their baseline and belt aces past each-other in a fifth set that has already crawled past two hours. They are now tied at 18-games apiece.
On and on they go. Soon they will sprout beards and their hair will grow down their backs, and their tennis whites will yellow and then rot off their bodies. And still they will stand out there on Court 18, belting aces and listening as the umpire calls the score. Finally, I suppose, one of them will die.
Maybe this live blog wasn't a great decision.
9:39 - Josh Elliot just used the word apoplectic - somebody shoot me.
9:36 - Sage Steele tells us the match will resume "shortly" - I guess considering the length of this match that is an accurate description. Pam Shriver shown interviewing Nicolas Mahut - I wonder if James Blake is lurking in the crowd with a crowbar...
9:30 - The dulcet tones of Cliff DRYSdale welcome us to... Maria Sharapova? Apparently... Isner and Mahut take the court at 10:30 AM - not 9:30 AM! Fantastic. Thanks ESPN. Unreal. How do you promote the start of a match at 9:30 AM and then say surprise it starts at 10:30 AM - enjoy an hour of random tennis before the match you really want to see begins. Really a bad job by ESPN here - you have to make it clear what time the match you're promoting starts! Grrrr - I'm angry. Well, I could wait for an hour, or we could channel surf and try and make fun of people! I'm here and you're here, so we might as well roll with it!
9:27 - Nothing like building up to the conclusion (?) of this game by seeing a replay of the NBA Draft combine. Thank God, I can't believe I missed this the first time. Look at those wonderful sky blue ESPNU polos. Well, at least Billy King found some sort of employment.
9:25: Good morning and welcome to our live Wimbledon coverage of the most fascinating game of sports I can ever remember. Sure, it's not the greatest tennis match ever, but the sheer length and test of wills makes it beyond belief. Look at the records they have set:
Time: 10 Hours!! Previous: 6'33''
Games: 163 and going!! Previous: 112
193 Combined Aces - Isner 96 Mahut 95
881 points
435 winners
Oh, and they would have broken both of those records in just the 5th set alone which has lasted 118 games!!! It's not just that Mahut and Isner have broken the record, it's that they have demolished it so far beyond belief that we are now in some sort of Twilight Zone. These guys have gone 1.5 times longer than any previous tennis match in history. Translate that to other sports and you begin to realize just what is happening here...
NFL: 1972 AFC Playoffs Chiefs v Dolphins - 82 minutes 40 seconds, 2 OT -> IsnerMahut World would have this game at 123 minutes - over 4 overtimes!!
NHL: 1936 Detroit v Montreal - 176 minutes 30 seconds, 6 OT -> IsnerMahut World would have this game at 264 minutes - 10 overtimes!!
MLB: 1984 Chicago v Milwaukee - 25 innings -> IsnerMahut World would have this game at 37.5 innings!!
Oh, wait, and these guys aren't even done yet!!! This could go for another 118 games today!!! And, that's what makes this match so unbelievable - nobody alive has ever seen anything like this before, and we probably will never see anything like this again.
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