Wimbledon took a historic step on Friday, announcing that beginning with the next edition of The Championships, there will be a final-set tie-break at 12-12.

Debate over whether or not to introduce a final-set tie-break came to the forefront at SW19 earlier this year when Kevin Anderson defeated John Isner in the event’s longest semi-final in history, with the South African triumphing 26-24 in the fifth set. Isner also played the longest match of all-time at Wimbledon, defeating Nicolas Mahut 70-68 in the final set in 2010.

“Our view was that the time had come to introduce a tie-break method for matches that had not reached their natural conclusion at a reasonable point during the deciding set,” said Philip Brook, the chairman of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. “While we know the instances of matches extending deep into the final set are rare, we feel that a tie-break at 12-12 strikes an equitable balance between allowing players ample opportunity to complete the match to advantage, while also providing certainty that the match will reach a conclusion in an acceptable timeframe.”

The new rule will apply to all events at The Championships across Qualifying, Gentlemen’s, Ladies’, Mixed and Junior singles and doubles. It will be a traditional 12-point tie-break, with the first player to seven points — win by two — earning the victory. 

“In reaching this decision, the AELTC Committee sought the feedback of both players and officials, analysed two decades of match data, and considered other factors including scheduling complexities and spectator experience,” Brook said.

Stefanos Tsitsipas kept alive his chances of reaching a third ATP World Tour final of the year on Friday by beating the experienced German Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3, 7-6(4) in one hour and 36 minutes at the Intrum Stockholm Open.

Tsitsipas, a runner-up at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell and the Rogers Cup (l. to Nadal both times), fought back from 1-4 down in the second set and saved two set points at 2-5, 15/40. The #NextGenATP Greek has already clinched his place at next month’s Next Gen ATP Finals. Buy Your Milan Tickets

“I showed character and a bit more passion for every shot that I played,” said Tsitsipas. “When I was a break down I concentrated hard. I played rallies and waited for an opportunity and put pressure on him to finish the points. In general, I was calm and I served pretty well today – much better than my first-round match. I’d like to push more and get more [ATP Rankings] points in the next few weeks.”

He’ll now play second seed Fabio Fognini for the first time. Fognini, who is currently No. 12 in the ATP Race To London, for one of the three remaining spots at the eight-man Nitto ATP Finals, was leading 7-5, 2-1 after 54 minutes of play when sixth-seeded South Korean Hyeon Chung retired due to a right foot injury. Fognini has won a career-best three titles this season, and is trying to become the first Italian on record to win four tour-level crowns in one year. 

American John Isner continued his push for a spot at the Nitto ATP Finals on Friday, outlasting compatriot Tennys Sandgren 7-6(8), 6-7(5), 7-6(2) to reach the semi-finals in Stockholm. 

The top seed, competing in his first tournament as a father, has won both of his matches in third-set tie-breaks. In fact, all six of the sets he has played have gone to tie-breaks. Isner moves into ninth place in the ATP Race To London with 3,020 points thanks to his victory against Sandgren, putting him 515 points behind No. 8 Dominic Thiem. The 33-year-old is trying to qualify for the season finale, to be held at The O2 in London from 11-18 November, for the first time. 

It has been perhaps the strongest season of Isner’s career, as the American captured his maiden ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. Isner also climbed as high as No. 8 in the ATP Rankings, after advancing to the Wimbledon semi-finals, his first trip to the last four of a Grand Slam.

Isner will look to keep it up against qualifier and World No. 145 Ernests Gulbis, who defeated 2017 Paris titlist Jack Sock 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach his first tour-level semi-final since Vienna in October 2015. Gulbis is the first qualifier to advance to the last four in Stockholm since Matthias Bachinger did it in 2014 before losing to Tomas Berdych.

British Pair Reach Doubles Final
Luke Bambridge and Jonny O’Mara, who captured their first ATP World Tour title at the Nature Valley International in June (d. Skupskis), knocked out Simone Bolelli and Ivan Dodig 6-3, 6-4 in 67 minutes for a place in the doubles final.

Elsewhere, third seeds Marcus Daniell and Wesley Koolhof booked a place in the semi-finals by converting their fourth match point opportunity in a 6-7(3), 6-2, 11-9 victory over Matthew Ebden and Robert Lindstedt in one hour and 39 minutes. They will now play French team Julien Benneteau and Lucas Pouille on Saturday.

Fourth seed Richard Gasquet saved one match point at 7/8 in the deciding set tie-break of a 6-4, 6-7(4), 7-6(9) victory over Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff on Friday at the European Open.

The 32-year-old continues his strong season, advancing to his sixth tour-level semi-final of the year. Earlier this month, the Frenchman made the last four at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships 2018, another indoor hard-court event, where he lost to in-form Kei Nishikori. The Libema Open champion, who owns 15 ATP World Tour trophies, is trying to capture two titles in the same season for the fifth time in his career. 

Gasquet first held two match point chances at 6-5 in the third set, but finally converted his eighth match point — and his sixth of the tie-break — to complete his 34th match win of the season. He next plays Briton Kyle Edmund, who advanced when qualifier Ilya Ivashka withdrew due to a left thigh injury. Edmund has won two of the pair’s three FedEx ATP Head2Head meetings, and he is pursuing his maiden ATP World Tour title.

Argentina’s Diego Schwartzman is one match win away from reaching the Antwerp final for the third straight year. The second seed came through a match of nine service breaks to beat fifth-seeded Frenchman Gilles Simon 6-4, 6-3 in one hour and 36 minutes. Schwartzman will next face Frenchman Gael Monfils, who ousted Canadian Vasek Pospisil 7-5, 6-4. 

Monfils was fresh off a victory against compatriot Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. And in the quarter-finals, he maintained that momentum, striking 10 aces and saving the two break points he faced en route to a one-hour, 35-minute triumph. Schwartzman beat the Frenchman earlier this year at the Rio Open presented by Claro, where he eventually claimed the biggest title of his career. Monfils, who was victorious at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in January, will try to avenge that quarter-final defeat to reach his second tour-level final of 2018.

Demoliner/Gonzalez Advance To Doubles Final
Marcelo Demoliner and Santiago Gonzalez, winners of the Turkish Airlines Antalya Open title in June (d. Arends/Middelkoop), booked a place in the final by beating Spanish brothers Gerard Granollers and Marcel Granollers 6-3, 6-4 in 59 minutes. They await the winners of second-seeded Frenchmen Nicholas Mahut and Edouard Roger-Vasselin and fourth seeds Divij Sharan and Artem Sitak.

It’s only fitting that at the VTB Kremlin Cup, held in Moscow, the Top 2 Russians in the ATP Rankings will battle for a spot in the final. 

Two-time ATP World Tour titlist Karen Khachanov thrilled his home crowd with a 6-2, 7-6(5) victory against Sofia champion Mirza Basic on Friday to reach the semi-finals at this event for the first time.

Khachanov has climbed as high as No. 24 in the ATP Rankings this year, and he showed his talent by not only earning his second tour-level crown at the Open 13 Provence, but also making the semi-finals at the Rogers Cup. That was his first trip to the last four at an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament (l. to Nadal).

Khachanov will next face a friend in Daniil Medvedev. The Russian No. 1 beat lucky loser Ricardas Berankis 6-2, 1-6, 6-4 to set his second FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting against Khachanov. Medvedev beat his compatriot at last year’s Next Gen ATP Finals in four sets.

“I have no choice. We are both Russians. We are both playing at home. We are both motivated to win,” Khachanov said of playing his friend. “We are friends off court, but on court we are rivals. I think we’re going to have a great match.”

Medvedev is one of the most in-form players in the world at the moment, recently capturing his third title of the season at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships 2018. Medvedev did not own a tour-level trophy when the year began, but the second seed could claim championship No. 4 this week, which would be his first on home soil.

France’s Adrian Mannarino saved five set points at 5-6 in the first set and withstood 14 aces from Belarusian qualifier Egor Gerasimov in a 7-6(3), 6-3 victory over one hour and 31 minutes on Friday for a place in the semi-finals.

Mannarino, who is pursuing his maiden ATP World Tour title, will next play Italy’s Andreas Seppi. The 2012 Moscow champion recovered from 1-4 down in the second set to beat fourth-seeded Serbian Filip Krajinovic 6-4, 7-6(2) in one hour and 53 minutes. He is through to his third tour-level semi-final of the year (also the ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament and the Gazprom Hungarian Open).

Krajicek/Ram Reach Doubles Final
Second-seeded Americans Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram, who captured two ATP Challenger Tour titles in 2015 at Leon and Guadalajara, booked a place in the final with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Andreas Mies and Hans Podlipnik-Castillo in 69 minutes.