WATCH Kevin Anderson Turns Left-Handed in Desperate Bid for Wimbledon Point
During the marathon match on Centre Court today at Wimbledon in London, South African Kevin Anderson momentarily turned left-handed in a desperate bid to win a point… and pulled it off perfectly, thanks largely to his father! Watch below. Wimbledon called it an “epic point” as Anderson – who had fallen over – got up […]
During the marathon match on Centre Court today at Wimbledon in London, South African Kevin Anderson momentarily turned left-handed in a desperate bid to win a point… and pulled it off perfectly, thanks largely to his father! Watch below.
Wimbledon called it an “epic point” as Anderson – who had fallen over – got up and played left handed to win the point against John Isner in the longest semi-final match in Wimbledon history, at six hours and 35 minutes. It was also the longest ever match on Centre Court. (Isner himself holds the record for the longest match ever at Wimbledon – on Court 18 – for the 11 hour and 5 minute match he played in 2010 against Frenchman Nicolas Mahut.)
When Anderson fell at 24-24 in the fifth sert – what he did next will be remembered forever. He didn’t give up. He didn’t let the point go. Instead, with sheer guts and determination he not only got up… but he played the point – with his left hand – and won!
Anderson attributed his incredible shot to his father.
“My dad used to say ‘let’s play left-handed, but I didn’t know it would come in to play at this stage of my career,” Anderson revealed. “It was a vital point.”
WATCH Kevin Anderson turns left-handed at Wimbledon 2018
Looking ahead to Sunday, Anderson admitted: “It’s tough to recover for the final. I hope Grand Slams change this format. But I’m through to the final. I will have to recover and be as fresh as possible. It will take a long time to process what’s happened in this match but being in the final at Wimbledon is a dream come true.”
“Playing like that in those conditions was really tough on both of us,” Anderson said, with his voice quivering from tiredness. “At the end you feel like it’s a draw but someone has to win.
“John is such a great guy and I really feel for him. I don’t know how you could take that, playing so long and coming up short. Congratulations to him on such a great tournament. Semis here is a remarkable achievement and I know he can come back stronger very soon.”
I get knocked down, but I get up again. You're never gonna keep me down…#Wimbledon @KAndersonATP pic.twitter.com/1cY6i2WoUp
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 13, 2018
Read more: Kevin Anderson through to Wimbledon Final.