Should all the Majors go to 5th Set Tiebreak

[McEnroeisanartist]

Should all the Majors go to a 5th Set Tiebreak rather than having to win by 2 games.

It seems there have been countless matches that people remember or consider classic that went beyond 6 games all.

Whereas, how many matches are considered great that ended in a 5th set tiebreaker? The few that come to mind:

Rosewall-Laver - 1972 WTC Final
McEnroe-Connors - 1980 U.S. Open semifinal - such an anticlimatic finish
Becker-Lendl - 1988 Masters Final
Connors-Krickstein - 1991 U.S. Open 4th Round - somehow seemed inevitable that Connors would win
Nadal-Federer - 2006 Rome Final - most people didn't watch the match live
Agassi-Blake - 2006 U.S. Open quarterfinal

Any other classics that I am missing?

[BevelDevil]

Yes, they're more exciting.

[Mustard]

No. I only like them at the US Open.

[westside]

Originally Posted by Mustard

No. I only like them at the US Open.

This.

Love watching a good 5th set epic

[veroniquem]

For suspense, excitement, nothing beats no TB in the 5th. I wish the USO would cancel the TB in the 5th. To me, that was a very bad decision. And for the sake of fairness too. I hate seeing a several hour battle getting settled by a TB, complete anti-climax and diminishes the value of the long effort the players had to produce to get that far.

[Mustard]

Originally Posted by veroniquem

For suspense, excitement, nothing beats no TB in the 5th. I wish the USO would cancel the TB in the 5th. To me, that was a very bad decision. And for the sake of fairness too. I hate seeing a few hours battle getting settled by a TB, complete anti-climax and diminishes the value of the long effort the players had to produce to get that far.

The suspense factor is precisely why I like fifth set tiebreaks at the US Open. It suits the character of the tournament. At the other majors, I would hate fifth set tiebreaks.

[veroniquem]

Originally Posted by Mustard

The suspense factor is precisely why I like fifth set tiebreaks at the US Open. It suits the character of the tournament. At the other majors, I would hate fifth set tiebreaks.

Why does it suit the character of the tournament? I don't understand the "character" difference between AO and USO.

[Ico]

How many matches have actually used the fifth set tiebreaker in recent-ish years? I know Wimbledon produces a lot of serve-fest fifth sets that drag on but I can't remember being let down by a tiebreaker at the end of an epic in New York.

[tennisaddict]

They should have 5th set tiebreaker for all matches except finals.

It is senseless when you have a 7 match tournament , where potentially Fed can meet Delpo or Novak against Isner in the round of 16 and for the winner it is impossible to win the next match, where if they had a 5th set tiebreak anyone of Fed/Delpo/Novak can go on to win the major.

This is one of the few reasons why USO ranks highly for some.

[veroniquem]

And this is the reason why the USO ranks lowly for me. That + playing the semis on Saturday which is a shame and a scandal and greatly affects the final result.

[Mustard]

Originally Posted by veroniquem

Why does it suit the character of the tournament? I don't understand the "character" difference between AO and USO.

The US Open has that gladitorial feel. The other majors don't have that same feel. The Australian Open is easy going, Wimbledon is theatrical, and the French Open is a grindfest.

[veroniquem]

Well, I'm sure gladiators would have chosen the no TB option (blood and tears!) but thanks for the explanation.

[Magnetite]

Keep it at the US Open, but leave it out of RG and Wimbledon. The AO can do whatever they want.

It's nice having variety. It's better that they don't homogenise everything.

[Feña14]

Originally Posted by veroniquem

And this is the reason why the USO ranks lowly for me. That + playing the semis on Saturday which is a shame and a scandal and greatly affects the final result.

I'm with you there, not really a big fan of the US Open in general, for many reasons it just feels like another North American hard court tournament, of which there are many. You see the blue courts and US Open series backdrops throughout the summer, you get to New York and it's the same. The tie-break in a final set is standard for every other tournament, for me personally I don't like to see it in a major.

I'll admit it's come in handy with all the poor weather we've had at the tournament over the last however many years. 5, 5 set matches over the course of 7 days is tough as it is! Some of those finishing 17-15 in the 5th must be hell for organisers and the players

[Al Czervik]

I have come around on this through the years. I always hated the US Open for that fifth set tiebreaker. Now, I think it's right, especially the way the game has become a war of attrition. That fifth set in Australia this year would have had no business going to something like 12-10. It was already a marathon. I think the tiebreak puts more incentive on the players to fight for the break of serve. I do think Olympics had it right to play out the third since the tournament had such great importance and they simply didn't have time for five set matches.

[Mustard]

Originally Posted by veroniquem

Well, I'm sure gladiators would have chosen the no TB option (blood and tears!) but thanks for the explanation.

The crowd in the arena wouldn't though

[veroniquem]

Originally Posted by Magnetite

Keep it at the US Open, but leave it out of RG and Wimbledon. The AO can do whatever they want.

It's nice having variety. It's better that they don't homogenise everything.

Actually, I'd like for the slams to have the exact same rules, they're worth the same amount of points, they have the same # of matches with same number of sets, same # of players. To me they should also adopt the same policy about TBs if possible. It should be the majority rule, so the USO should align on the other 3.

[Mustard]

Originally Posted by veroniquem

Actually, I'd like for the slams to have the exact same rules, they're worth the same amount of points, they have the same # of matches with same number of sets, same # of players. To me they should also adopt the same policy about TBs if possible. It should be the majority rule, so the USO should align on the other 3.

They will never come to an agreement, anyway. The US Open has fifth set tiebreaks so that the length of a match can be predicted to a certain extent, thinking of TV schedules. The French Open and Wimbledon value tradition highly, so will stick with no tiebreaks in the fifth set.

I like the rules as they are. As I said before, I'd hate fifth set tiebreaks at the Australian Open, French Open or Wimbledon. There was fuss from McEnroe in 2010 after the Isner vs. Mahut epic.

[MichaelNadal]

Not at all, I like the fact that only the USO does. Nothing about tennis scoring/history should be changed at this point.

[Sentinel]

Originally Posted by tennisaddict

They should have 5th set tiebreaker for all matches except finals.

Agree with this.

Or at least go in for a tie-break after 8-8 or 10-10.