French Open 2019: Ivo Karlovic and Feliciano Lopez serve up oldest match in French Open history
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ByEurosport
Updated 28/05/2019 at 18:01 GMT
Croatia's Ivo Karlovic became the first man in his 40s to compete in a Grand Slam singles match for 27 years when he beat fellow veteran Feliciano Lopez at Roland Garros on Tuesday.
Ivo Karlovic of Croatia plays a forehand during his mens singles first round match against Feliciano Lopez of Spain during Day three of the 2019 French Open at Roland Garros on May 28, 2019.
Image credit: Eurosport
Karlovic, who turned 40 in February, won 7-6(4) 7-5 6-7(7) 7-5 against the 37-year-old Spaniard in the oldest French Open men's match-up in terms of combined ages in the professional era.
The last player to contest a Grand Slam singles match having turned 40 was American Jimmy Connors at the U.S. Open in 1992.
Karlovic, well used to setting records for longevity everywhere he travels, is also the oldest man to compete at the French Open since 41-year-old Istvan Gulyas in 1973.
It was a typical Karlovic match with the 2.11 metre tall Croat dominating his service games.
He took the opening set on a tiebreak but did not engineer a break point on the Lopez serve until pouncing with his opponent 5-6 down in the second set.
A fifth set loomed when Lopez led 5-2 in the fourth set but Karlovic rattled off five straight games to move through.
"It means a lot. Even though it's in the record books as the oldest one, at least it's in the record books, so I like it," Karlovic said of playing his fellow long-survivor.
"I was out for almost two months, so I am really happy that I was able to win today."
Karlovic, ranked 94, had decided against playing any claycourt tournaments in the build-up to Roland Garros where he has never gone past the third round.
But there was nothing rusty about his serve, not giving Lopez a sniff of a break in the opening two sets.
He took the first set on a tiebreak but did not engineer a break point on the Lopez serve until pouncing with his opponent 5-6 down in the second set.
Almost inevitably the third set went to another tiebreak and when Lopez missed a routine volley at 5-5 it handed Karlovic a match point, only for him to be denied by a lucky backhand return that left him floundering at the net.
A fifth set loomed when Lopez led 5-2 in the fourth set but Karlovic rattled off five straight games to move through.
In a performance of old-school skills he won 65 points at the net.
"Right now I'm just happy with any match that I win," Karlovic said. "Even if it's against older guys or kids, whatever. I just like to win."
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