Romain Rouillard 7:09 p.m., January 19, 2023

Briton Andy Murray won a marathon match this Thursday at the Australian Open against local player Thanasi Kokkinakis (4-6, 6-7, 7-6, 6-3, 7-5).

A dantesque opposition from 5:50 a.m. which finally ended at 4:06 a.m. local time.

The former world number 1 will face Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut in the next round.

They kept the spectators spellbound until the end of the night.

In the second round of the Australian Open, the Briton Andy Murray, former world number 1, and the Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis fought a Homeric battle of 5 hours and 50 minutes which ended at 4:06 in the morning.

And in the end, it was the 35-year-old Scottish stainless who triumphed over the local player, nine years his junior, but who nevertheless had a two-set lead (4-6, 6-7, 7- 6, 6-3, 7-5).

Legend-ANDY



Two sets down and @andy_murray defeats Kokkinakis.

#AusOpen • #AO2023

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 19, 2023

The start of the match is, in fact, to the advantage of Kokkinakis (159th at ATP) who was able to count on the support of an audience, logically won over to his cause.

But that was without counting on the resilience of Andy Murray, who fell to 66th place in the world but still just as combative and a brawler on the court.

The Briton pockets the third set, equalizes with two sets everywhere and takes the service of his opponent at the best of times in the fifth set at 5-5.

The Briton does not tremble at the time of conclusion and qualifies for the third round.

In the middle of the Australian night.

The latest match record will wait

Insufficient, however, to make it the latest match in the history of tennis.

This was disputed last February at the Acapulco Open in Mexico and saw the German Alexander Zverev dismiss the American Jenson Brooksby after a meeting ended at 4:50 a.m. local time.

The previous record dated back to 2008 and a confrontation between Australian Lleyton Hewitt and Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis, this time at the Australian Open, which lasted until 4:34. 

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This meeting of nearly 6 hours between Murray and Kokkinakis was on the other hand far from dethroning the longest poster in the history which had opposed the French Nicolas Mahut to the American John Isner in the first round of Wimbledon in 2010. game lasted 11 hours and 5 minutes, spread over three days and ended with the victory of the giant Isner (2.08m) 70-68 in the last set.