Thursday 24th June2010

 

This was taken from the BBC website regarding the game yesterday…

Wimbledon 2010: John Isner beats Nicolas Mahut in epic 

By David Ornstein
BBC Sport at Wimbledon

American John Isner held his nerve to overcome Nicolas Mahut 70-68 in the deciding set of their unforgettable first-round encounter at Wimbledon.

Isner outlasted Frenchman Mahut to win 6-4 3-6 6-7 (7-9) 7-6 (7-3) 70-68 in the longest match in history, taking 11 hours and five minutes over three days.

Play resumed at 59-59 in the fifth set and both men confidently held serve before Isner struck in game 138.

The 23rd seed plays Thiemo De Bakker of the Netherlands in round two on Friday.

"This crowd was fantastic," Isner told BBC Sport's John Inverdale on court at the end. "What more can you say? The guy's an absolute warrior. It stinks someone had to lose.

"To share this with him was an absolute honour. Maybe we'll meet again somewhere down the road and it won't be 70-68."

Exhausted marathon pair honoured by Wimbledon

A physically and emotionally-drained Mahut commented: "At this moment I'm just really thankful. It was amazing today. John deserved to win. He served unbelievable, he's a champion.

"It was really an honour to play the greatest match ever at the greatest place for tennis. It was very long but I think we both enjoyed it."

Before the interview the pair were each presented with a crystal bowl and crystal champagne flutes by the All England Club to mark their historic match.

The duel will go down as the most extraordinary in tennis history, smashing the previous records for the longest match, the longest set, the most games in a set and a match, the most aces in a match and the most aces by a player.

Isner finished with 112 aces and Mahut 103, easily beating the previous record - held by Croatia's Ivo Karlovic - of 78.

Aside from the Queen's first visit to Wimbledon since 1977, there was only one topic of conversation on people's lips as the All England Club opened its gates for day four of what has already been an unforgettable Championships.

Isner appeared to be labouring physically but his serve - rarely dipping below the 130 mph mark - consistently averted any hint of danger.

When Mahut lashed his 100th and 101st aces in game 124, the giant from North Carolina bent towards the ground in exasperation, yet serving first with new balls at 62-62 seemed to reinvigorate him.

Rasping winners and aces came and went as the scoreboard entered uncharted territory with every passing game.

Umpire comment:

"It has been quite amazing to be involved with such an extraordinary match," said Lahyani. "I can't imagine seeing another one like it in my lifetime.

"I didn't get a chance to feel tired, I was gripped by the amazing match and my concentration stayed good - I owed that to the players, their stamina was breath-taking and their behaviour exceptional.

"I think the longest match I've ever chair umpired before was five and a half hours long - that's a lot less than even the third set of this one!

"When you are so focussed and every point feels like a match point you just don't even think about eating or needing the bathroom.

"On Wednesday my voice did get a little dry, but I have drunk plenty today and it feels good. I travel Economy so seven hours sitting still on court is nothing."

My darling, beloved Sara didn’t think that I highlighted how exquisite our Selsdon Park lodging was so I have added these 2 photos to appease her.

 

We left the elegant and stately Manor Home yesterday morning after another lovely breakfast and travelled on the M25 before joining the M4 and our journey westwards towards Bristol.

This was all motorway driving but just after Bristol we took a smaller road and then finished up on roads like this…

Sara appreciated this scraggy tree  highlighted by the haunting light of the cloudy sky.

She had seen a castle earlier and mentioned she wanted to see a castle today. It just so happened  that the very next town,  Dunster  housed such a castle.

This round building is the Old Yarn Market, in the High Street. Built in 1609, it reflects the village's wool  trading heritage, when market day was the biggest event for miles around.

Dunster  Castle with its spectacular views has been an important feature of the Somerset landscape for the last 1000 years.

 

Dunster is an idyllic medieval village with a wealth of heritage and history dating back to 700 AD.  Next we headed into Exmoor Park which encompasses 267 sq. mi. and lots of steep and craggy coastline.

The acreages are separated by hedges rather than fences. Hedges often line the road and inhibit visibility. Big job to keep them under control.

  Sara liked this sign.

Going to let Sara take over now as she took the photos today.

Les and I were just discussing the wild horses of Exmoor when we came around the bend to see these critters along the road. Apparently these horses are considered endangered and there are only about 200 still roaming freely in Exmoor.

I couldn’t resist this suckling foal.

These horses are hardy enough to survive wicked winters in the moors with double coats of woolly hair.

We came upon this lovely town called Lynton which is Devonshire..

A stop at the very helpful Tourist centre and we were off to out accommodation for the night, the Gables B & B!!!!

We unpacked and then went for a lovely walk to the Valley of Rocks.

 

This was a dramatic trail from the hilly townsite to Castle Rock.  The West Coast Path boasts the highest coastline in England with cliffs rising to 820 ft. and a mixture of woodland, wide open moorland, beautiful combes, bubbling streams and dramatic marshland ensuring fabulous views and even some wildlife….

The wonderful walk had given us an appetite so we walked into the village found a pub that was busy and had a fantastic meal.

So ends a great day, yes another one.

You will notice that this blog is rather well written and much higher than my standard…I think Sara has a regular job now….it looks great..thanks.