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PARIS (AFP) – Germany’s Daniel Altmaier won the fifth longest ever French Open match on Thursday as 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva made the last 32, providing a tantalizing glimpse into the sport’s future.
Altmaier saved two match points and then held his nerve on a fifth match point of his own to knock out Italian eighth seed Jannik Sinner 6-7 (0/7), 7-6 (9/7), 1-6, 7-6 (7/4), 7-5 after five hours and 26 minutes of breathless action on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
“I just love the game of tennis,” said Altmaier, ranked 79 in the world and who broke down in tears at the end of the marathon.
The longest ever match at Roland Garros remains the six hours and 33 minutes it took Fabrice Santoro to beat fellow Frenchman Arnaud Clement in 2004.
Next up is a clash with Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov for a place in the last 16.
Andreeva became just the seventh player under the age of 17 to make the third round in Paris in 30 years, joining the likes of Serena Williams and Martina Hingis, with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Diane Parry of France.
Andreeva, ranked at 143 and making her Grand Slam debut after coming through the qualifiers, will face Coco Gauff in the next round.
The 19-year-old Gauff, the runner-up to Iga Swiatek last year, defeated Julia Grabher of Austria 6-2, 6-3.
Swiatek maintained her bid to become the first woman to successfully defend the French Open title in 16 years by cruising into the third round with a 6-4, 6-0 win over American Claire Liu.
World number one Swiatek, who turned 22 on Wednesday, will face China’s Wang Xinyu on Saturday for a place in the second week.
The Polish star could lose her world number one ranking for the first time in over a year next week if she fails to lift a fourth Grand Slam singles title.
Justine Henin was the last woman to win back-to-back Roland Garros titles when she lifted her third in a row and fourth in total in 2007.
One year after suffering a season-ending ankle ligament injury in the semi-final against Rafael Nadal, Germany’s Alexander Zverev made a winning return to Court Philippe Chatrier.
Zverev, who was taken off court in a wheelchair in that 2022 tie, buried the misery with a confident 6-4, 6-2, 6-1 win over Alex Molcan.
World number four and Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina racked up her 30th win of the year by defeating Czech teenager Linda Noskova 6-3, 6-3.
Last year’s men’s runner-up Casper Ruud booked his place in the third round with a four-set win over battling Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri.
The Norwegian fourth seed was pushed hard by his 129th-ranked opponent but clinched a 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 success.
Ruud will next face Zhang Zhizhen who became the first Chinese man to make the last 32 since 1937 with a 7-6 (7/3), 6-3, 6-4 win over Argentine qualifier Thiago Agustin Tirante.
The bottom half of the men’s draw had already opened up after world number two Daniil Medvedev was knocked out in the first round by Brazil’s Thiago Seyboth Wild.
World number 172 Seyboth Wild backed up that win by seeing off Guido Pella of Argentina 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
