Roddick heroics cap dramatic day

Andy Roddick needed every scrap of his youthful ebullience and energy to defeat Younes el Aynaoui on Wednesday in an epic quarter-final to rank alongside any in Australian Open history.

It took the 20-year-old American a minute short of five hours to make his 11-year advantage count against the valiant Moroccan, Roddick sealing a 4-6, 7-6, 4-6, 6-4, 21-19 victory to reach his first Grand Slam semi-final.

The fifth set was the longest recorded in a Grand Slam men8217;s singles match since tennis turned professional in 1968, finally ending after two hours 23 minutes with the exhausted players embracing warmly at the net.

While dramatic tennis dominated the men8217;s singles, the main action in the women8217;s singles was conducted by Serena Williams off court.