Tennis stars Anna Blinkova and Elena Rybakina made history on Thursday as they played out the longest ever tiebreak in women's Grand Slam history during their second-round match at the Australian Open 2024.
The unseeded Russian caused a major upset, securing a 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 victory over the third-seeded Rybakina, clinching the tiebreak 22-20 in a match that extended well beyond 30 minutes in the final set.
Blinkova's 42-point match-tiebreak surpasses the previous women's record set by Lesia Tsurenko at Wimbledon last year.
It also exceeds the 38-point tiebreaks played by Tsurenko and Ana Bogdan at Wimbledon and by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Andy Roddick at the 2007 Australian Open.
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"This day I will remember for the rest of my life," Blinkova said. "Especially on this court, with this crowd. I will never forget it. It’s the best day of my life so far."
Despite Rybakina missing eight match points, the enthralling encounter at Melbourne Park lasted two hours and 46 minutes, with the Kazakh, last year's runner-up, becoming the highest-seeded woman to exit the tournament so far.
Blinkova's victory is her career best by ranking and marks her second Top 5 win in the past 12 months, both achieved at Grand Slam events.
This is also Blinkova's career best by ranking and second Top 5 win in the past 12 months. Both came at the Grand Slams, after Blinkova defeated Caroline Garcia in three sets at Roland Garros last spring.
"When I played at the French Open against Caroline, the crowd was mostly against me, obviously," Blinkova said. "Today they were cheering me up so much. They were incredible. I loved it. My dream came true to play on Rod Laver, full of spectators. The energy was crazy."
