Rafael Nadal 'not in favour or not against', but is tie-break change at Grand Slams good for tennis?

Some records are meant to be broken. Some are not. The record for the longest tennis match in history now looks likelier than ever to stand the test of time after all four Grand Slams moved to hold first-to-10 tie-breaks at 6-6 in the fifth set.

Ad/> The decision all-but ends the potential possibility of a never-ending match. It brings uniformity to the four majors and means Novak Djokovic’s victory over Roger Federer in the 2019 Wimbledon final (13-12 in the fifth set) and Federer’s epic win over Andy Roddick in the 2009 Wimbledon final (16-14 in the fifth set) will be the last of their kind. ATP Indian Wells'Everyone knows how good he is' — Nadal sets sights on old foe Kyrgios after going 18-03 HOURS AGO The French Open has been the final major to fall in line.

The US Open has been utilising tie-breaks in all sets since 1970. The Australian Open moved to a first-to-10 tie-break at 6-6 in the fifth set in 2019. Wimbledon also ended the possibility of marathon matches that year, deciding that 12-12 in the final set was the time to settle things with a tie-break.

The French Open had continued with traditional scoring that means a player needs to win by two clear games in the final set. But this year in Paris, and henceforth in all Grand Slam events, there will be a tie-break in the fifth set, with the first player to 10 points progressing as the winner. Even with the change there is still the slight possibility that the match could go on forever, as a player will still need to win the fifth-set tie-break by two clear points.