the match that would not end

i just had to document that the score is 55-55 in the fifth set.

that's right. "set." as in, tennis set. fifth, as in, there were four that came before.

mahut versus isner, the longest game ever... dastardly even. to say these guys are tuckered (even though the match has been spread over two days) is a ridiculous understatement. play has now run over the 9-hour mark.

the quality of the *serving* alone is awe-inspiring.

the first 60 or so games, i thought "how cool to be witnessing tennis history."

(now i am kind of embarrassed for whomever wins -- and so bummed on behalf of the loser.)

now it is 56-56... 157 games in the match so far! holy moly*, guacamole!

chapeaux, all around.

6/24/2010: {CONGRATULATIONS TO ISNER! the two had to come back on a THIRD day and the match ended up lasting ELEVEN hours, five minutes... this is one that will be long on the record books. the final fifth set score? 70-68}

* [T]he origin of the word Moly... comes from Homer's Odyssey. In book 10, Hermes gives the herb to Odysseus to protect him from Circe's incantation. Homer describes Moly by saying, "The root was black, while the flower was as white as milk; the gods call it Moly, and mortal men cannot uproot it, but the gods can do whatever they like."