Cape Town tennis enthusiasts break the record for the longest tennis match ever played

02/09/2017

South African tennis aficionados Carlos Gomes and Wendy Thompson broke the Guinness world record for the longest tennis match ever played this Monday. The pair slogged it out for 64 hours and raised about half a million rands for refurbishing the tennis facilities at local tennis clubs.

Two tennis enthusiasts in Cape Town, Carlos Gomes and Wendy Thompson, have broken the record for the longest singles tennis match ever played, reported sport24.co.za. The match was a fundraising event and helped raise close to half a million rands as the two players battled it out. Their match ended at 10 AM this Monday, after having gone on for 64 hours, bettering the previous record by about two hours. The match was held at the Constantia Tennis Club and there were youngsters from nearby clubs cheering them on.

“Shew, I went into some really dark places, physically we were able to deal with the challenges of the aches and pains but mentally it was very tough. In particular playing through the night and the tough times at around 2am on the Sunday and Monday mornings,” said Thompson, who had to get both her legs heavily strapped to endure the marathon.

Gomes also went through similar challenges, and he'd actually gone into the match having a cold. Midway through the match, he lost his voice, and his right hand also gave in, so he continued left-handed.

“If there is one good thing I have taken out of this experience, it is that I might actually play better left-handed. Mentally, it was tougher than I imagined. The fatigued plays on your mind and converts to anger. Luckily I had some good friends who were able to keep my head together and keep us on track. Within the first 5 hours I realised the hugeness of the task at hand and seriously doubted I could make it purely out of a time factor. I never doubted my fitness or the reason why we embarked on this mad challenge. From about hour 58 I was going downhill quickly it just happened without warning, I don’t remember much of it at all, I do remember being blind for a while and being helped by our support team as to where to stand and when to swing the racquet," said Gomes after the ordeal.

The main aim of playing this match was to raise money so that the tennis facilities at Khayalitsha on the Cape Flats and at Khayamandi in Stellenbosch could be improved. And after they raised about half a million for the cause, they have already set their sights on breaking another record.

“Yes, there will definitely be another bid!” croaked Gomes. The next bid might be for the Guinness Record for the longest doubles match.

Cape Town tennis enthusiasts break the record for the longest tennis match ever played

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