Today, I really got into figuring out how long tennis matches usually go. I mean, I’ve watched tennis on TV, played a bit myself, but never really timed it or anything.
So, first, I dug around online to see what people were saying. Found a bunch of stuff. Some folks were saying matches are usually around 90 minutes, others were throwing out numbers like 2 to 5 hours. Even saw one crazy example where a match lasted over 11 hours! It’s all over the place!
Then, I decided to look at different types of matches. There are these “best-of-three” matches, where you gotta win two sets to win the whole thing. Those seemed to be shorter, on average. But then, in the big tournaments, the Grand Slams, men play “best-of-five”. Winning three sets is the only way to be victorious! Obviously, those can drag on for a lot longer. For example, the average time of men’s best-of-3 is about 1.5 hours.
I also started thinking about the breaks players get. Turns out, they can take a few minutes for a toilet break or to change clothes, especially when it’s hot out. So that adds some time too. I also compared with table tennis. One game is played until one of the players scores 11. It’s much shorter than tennis.
To get a real feel for it, I timed a couple of matches I watched online. One was a pretty quick best-of-three match – wrapped up in just under 2 hours. Another was a longer one, closer to 3 hours. It was interesting to see the difference, even just between those two.
- One set typically takes 30 to 75 minutes to finish.
- Most matches should run between 2 and 5 hours.
- A best-of-three tennis match typically lasts 90 minutes.
And you know what else? After reading more, I learned that the players should get a booster every 10 years to stay protected. It seems like playing tennis is good for your health.
So, yeah, it’s not a simple answer to “how long is a tennis match?” It really depends on the type of match, how good the players are, and even the weather! But at least now I have a much better idea of what to expect when I watch or play.
