5 active players with the best win-rate in five-set matches at Slams, ft. Novak Djokovic & Rafael Nadal

Enduring a five-set match is one of the biggest challenges in tennis. A five-setter tests the player's stamina and consistency, and can last for well over three hours.

Over the course of the Open Era, many changes have been made in the rules pertaining to the fifth set. In 1970, the US Open became the first Slam to employ a sudden-death tiebreak at a set score of 6-6 in the decider. In 2018, Wimbledon introduced a first-to-7 points tiebreak at a set score of 12-12 in the decider. That same year, the Australian Open introduced a first-to-10 point tiebreak at a score of 6-6 in the decider.

Until recently, the French Open was the only Slam not to have a tiebreak in the deciding set. But earlier in 2022, the four Slams got together and introduced a common rule for the fifth set tiebreak across all Majors: a first-to-10 points tiebreak to be played at a set score of 6-6. The 2022 French Open was the first event to follow this unified rule.

The incessant changes in the fifth set scoring rules can be partly attributed to unforgiving long matches - like the one played by John Isner and Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon 2010. Another reason for the changes is that the advantage set format often hampered the scheduling. Moreover, tennis seasons are way more hectic than they used to be, which is why many came to the conclusion that the fifth set needs its own penalty shootout at some stage.

On that note, let's take a look at the five active men who have the best win-rate in five-set matches at the Slams. Each player listed below has played at least 30 Slam matches that went to a decider.

#5 Andy Murray - 65.7%

Andy Murray has won 23 of his 35 matches that have gone to the deciding set at the Majors. The former World No.1's most memorable fifth set match is arguably the 2012 US Open final against Novak Djokovic, which lasted for 4 hours and 54 minutes. Murray won the match 7-6(10) 7-5 2-6 3-6 6-2.

Interestingly, the Scot has been taken to five sets in the first round on nine different occasions. He has won six of those matches, most recently his 2022 Australian Open first-round win over Nikoloz Basilashvili.

Murray's third-round match against Philipp Kohlschreiber at the 2014 French Open was memorable too, as there were 22 games in the fifth set alone. After a little over four hours, Murray won the match 3-6 6-3 6-3 4-6 12-10.

Out of the 35-year-old's 23 five-set match wins at Slams, nine have been won after being 0-2 down.

#5 Rafael Nadal - 65.7%

Like Murray, Rafael Nadal has also won 23 of the 35 matches he has played that have gone to the fifth set. Nadal has played seven Major finals that have seen a decider. Four of those were against Roger Federer, with the two players winning two finals each.

The most memorable of those 'Fedal' five-setters is arguably the 2008 Wimbledon final. Then the longest Wimbledon final ever, the match was won by Nadal 6–4 6–4 6–7(5) 6–7(8) 9–7 after 4 hours and 48 minutes.

The Spaniard's 2012 Australian Open final is yet another memorable contest, where he lost to Novak Djokovic 5-7 6-4 6-2 6-7(5) 7-5. That is still the longest Slam final in history, lasting 5 hours and 53 minutes.

A decade later, at the same tournament, Rafael Nadal found himself down 0-2 against second seed Daniil Medvedev. In a display of sheer grit and determination, the Spaniard won the match after 5 hours and 24 minutes to clinch his 21st Slam and become the new leader of the men's all-time Slam tally.

The 2022 Australian Open final is one of just three instances when Nadal has recovered from a 0-2 deficit.

#3 Marin Cilic - 66.7%

2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic has played 42 five-set matches at Slams, winning 28 of them.

The big-serving Croat, who has reached as high as No. 3 in the rankings, played his longest five-set match at Wimbledon 2012 against Sam Querrey. Cilic eventually won the match 7-6(6) 6-4 6-7(2) 6-7(3) 17-15 after 5 hours and 31 minutes, which was then the second longest match ever played at Wimbledon.

Another match where two big servers went head-to-head against each other at Wimbledon was in the 2015 third round. After 4 hours and 31 minutes, Cilic won the marathon 7-6(4) 6-7(6) 6-4 6-7(4) 12-10 against John Isner.

The only five-set match that Cilic has played in the final of a Slam was at the 2018 Australian Open, against Roger Federer. The Swiss successfully defended his title, winning 6-2 6-7(5) 6-3 3-6 6-1 in three hours.

#2 Novak Djokovic - 79%

Novak Djokovic has a remarkable fifth set record, to say the least. The Serb has won 34 of the 43 five-set matches that he has played at the Slams.

Djokovic has played four matches lasting five hours or more - the 2012 Australian Open final against Nadal, the 2018 Wimbledon semifinal against Nadal, the 2013 Australian Open fourth round match against Stan Wawrinka and the 2007 Wimbledon quarterfinal against Marcos Baghdatis. Remarkably, Djokovic has won every one of those matches.

Moreover, the Serb has won five of his six Major finals that have gone to five sets. The only exception is the 2012 US Open final, which he lost to Andy Murray.

Apart from the 2012 Australian Open final, the two most notable Slam finals played by Djokovic are the 2019 Wimbledon final against Federer and the 2021 French Open final against Stefanos Tsitsipas. Djokovic and Federer contested the longest Wimbledon final ever in 2019, a match that lasted 4 hours and 57 minutes. Djokovic had to save match points in the deciding set tiebreak before eventually winning 7-6(5) 1-6 7-6(4) 4-6 13-12.

In the final of the 2021 French Open, Djokovic rallied from a 0-2 deficit to defeat Tsitsipas 6-7(6) 2-6 6-3 6-2 6-4 and complete a second Career Slam.

Among five-set matches played at the Slams, Djokovic has found himself down 0-2 on seven different occasions. In six of these matches, he has managed to turn the tide in his favor.

#1 Kei Nishikori - 83.3%

Former World No. 4 Kei Nishikori has the best win-rate in five-set matches among active players. He has won 25 of the 30 matches that have gone to a decider.

In 2016, Nishikori defeated Andy Murray in the US Open quarterfinal after nearly four hours, with a score of 1-6 6-4 4-6 6-1 7-5. The Japanese then played his longest five-set match against Pablo Carreno Busta, in the fourth round of the 2019 Australian Open.

Trailing 0-2, Nishikori staged a massive comeback to win the match 6-7(8) 4-6 7-6(4) 6-4 7-6(8) in five hours and five minutes.

The win-loss record for Kei Nishikori in five-set matches at every Slam individually is 7-1 (Australian Open), 9-2 (French Open), 2-1(Wimbledon), 7-1(US Open). He has thrice recovered from a 0-2 situation at Slams.

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Edited by Musab Abid