Leagues

Longest Grand Slam Tennis Matches in History

The average men’s tennis match lasts just under three hours. But the longest can go more than five hours. And in Grand Slam events, with everything on the line, players have dueled for days.

By Jeff Benson

Jun 12, 2024 | 10:38 am

UPDATED Jun 12, 2025 | 10:35 am

Jun 6, 2025; Paris, FR; Carlos Alcaraz of Spain returns a shot during his match against Lorenzo Musetti of Italy match on day 13 at Roland Garros Stadium.

Susan Mullane-Imagn Images

In the 2025 French Open final, the No. 2 men’s player in the world Carlos Alcaraz beat world No. 1 Jannik Sinner in epic fashion, coming from two sets down to win in 5 hours and 29 minutes.

That time set the record for the longest French Open final in history, besting the 1982 final by 47 minutes.

Would you believe that those same two men played the third-longest match in US Open history in 2022, when Alcaraz again defeated Sinner in 5 hours and 15 minutes to advance out of the quarterfinals?

But this most recent marathon match was far from the longest in Grand Slam history, let alone the French Open. And it’s only the second-longest Grand Slam final in the Open Era.

Five Grand Slam matches have lasted at least six hours, with the longest—a Wimbledon first-round faceoff between American John Isner and Frenchman Nicolas Mahut—going over 11 hours. It took three days to complete, with the final score of the fifth set looking like a college basketball score: 70–68 to Isner.

Eight years later, Isner would play in the second-longest Grand Slam match of all time, this time in the Wimbledon semifinals. This time, the score of the final set was more modest—a football score, say, with Isner going down to South African Kevin Anderson 26–24.

But while Isner had a fine career, he never won a Grand Slam final, which is where the real drama comes in.

The 2012 Australian Open final between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal is the longest Grand Slam final ever, with Djokovic eking out a victory in 5 hours and 53 minutes. A decade later, Nadal was involved in the third-longest Grand Slam final in history, this time defeating Daniil Medvedev in 5 hours and 24 minutes.

If it feels like tennis matches have gotten longer than they used to be, you’re not wrong.

After men’s Grand Slams settled on a best-of-five format in the late 1970s, matches became longer by definition. In the 21st century, match times increased on their own, partly due to increased athleticism—better athletes meant more shots returned. The average men’s grand slam match in 2023 shot up to 2 hours and 54 minutes, compared to 2 hours and 21 minutes in 1999, according to The Athletic.