Marathon man ends up on the losing side,again

When John Isner and Nicolas Mahut fought an over 11 hour duel for the longest tennis match ever,they ensured that Wimbledon 2010 would go down in history for more records than one.

When John Isner and Nicolas Mahut fought an over 11 hour duel for the longest tennis match ever,they ensured that Wimbledon 2010 would go down in history for more records than one. However,another tennis match at Roehampton,just five kilometres east of SW19,missed the record books despite hosting a 6 hours 40 minute encounter the longest at that time.

Englishman James Ward,fourth seed at the Games,was a part of that unwritten history but ended up losing to fellow Briton Chris Eaton. In the process,the duo broke the official record of six hours and 33 minutes set during the French Open match between Fabrice Santoro and Arnaud Clement in 2004.

On Friday,Ward found himself in the middle of another long match – a two hour long match against Indians Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi but he again ended up losing the battle of nerves,and concentration.

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It was a tough test of my physical capabilities,and I came out of it stronger. I just wish I could have won it, Ward told The Indian Express.

The Thursday duel reminded Ward of his near brush with history,a year back. In that match,Ward was playing Eaton for a place in the Davis Cup side and fought hard before losing 6-3,6-2,6-7,2-6,21-19. Not being a part of the ATP tour,the match did not make its way into the record books.

Playing to be a part of the team,the match involved no ranking points nor was any prize money at stake but the sheer effort surpassed all material gains and Ward believes he is stronger from the experience.

I had played only one five-setter before that game and I was glad that I even survived. It was a true test of focus and I was pushed to my mental and physical limit. I feel great that I am one of the few people who have played in such a long encounter, he said.

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The 23-year-old British No.3 has had a career filled with personal hardships. His father was diagnosed with a tumour behind his left ear in the Christmas of 2008. Training in Spain at the time,Ward had to take a break to take care of him. Money didnt come easy to him at that time and Ward was at the brink of quitting tennis. Thankfully,his father recovered and banished the idea from his head.

It was tough for the family and for me to be away,but Dad just wouldnt allow me to quit, he said. The second obstacle in his way was when he was out for five months due to glandular fever right after the Chennai Open in January this year.

The Commonwealth Games in Delhi is his comeback tournament and he is satisfied with his quarter-final appearances in the singles and doubles events.

The first event after injury is always a tester. I played well in the doubles match against Paes and Bhupathi. But my ultimate goal will be to break into the top 200 of the singles by the end of the year, he said.