NEW YORK — Daniel Evans has received the longest match on the US Open since tiebreakers had been launched in 1970, beating Karen Khachanov 6-7 (6), 7-6 (2), 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-4 on Tuesday in 5 hours, 35 minutes.
Evans trailed 4-0 within the fifth set earlier than operating off the ultimate six video games. The ultimate level, fittingly, was a marathon 22-shot rally, with Evans on the defensive for a lot of the purpose earlier than hitting a tough shot to the nook that the No. 23-seeded Khachanov could not get again over the web together with his backhand.
The earlier document was 5 hours, 26 minutes, when Stefan Edberg beat Michael Chang in a five-setter within the 1992 semifinals.
“I am immensely proud that I got here by means of the match,” Evans mentioned. “I feel that is the overriding feeling greater than something. I’ve had a number of first spherical (exits) this 12 months. It is good to win a match.”
Evans improved to 5-0 towards Khachanov, a semifinalist on the 2022 US Open, by rising in a match during which the units lasted 68, 67, 72, 67 and 61 minutes.
The British participant who performed doubles with Andy Murray on the Olympics within the three-time Grand Slam champion’s closing event completed with a 201-191 edge in complete factors. He superior to play Mariano Navone of Argentina within the second spherical.
“I do not suppose I’ve performed 5 hours, that lengthy, in a day ever, in two periods — by no means thoughts in a single,” mentioned Evans, who famous he wouldn’t be training Wednesday. “I used to be really pondering that on the court docket. I’ve by no means practiced two hours. It is usually an hour and a half.”
Court docket 6 hardly ever attracts a lot of a crowd on the sprawling Billie Jean King Nationwide Tennis Heart, however droves of followers had assembled by the point the match crossed the five-hour mark, overwhelming the stands regardless of the sweltering situations.
In keeping with ESPN BET, Khachanov went as quick as -50000 to win when up 4-0 within the fifth set, and Evans was out there to guess at +4000 throughout that point.
“I used to be making an attempt to simply play, keep on the market so long as doable at 4-love, and simply see the place I may get myself,” Evans mentioned. “Within the fourth set I needed to verify to see what set we had been in. I wasn’t solely certain.
“However, yeah, I do not actually wish to do this once more. That is for certain.”
ESPN’s D’Arcy Maine, The Related Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
