Continuing our Season in Review series, ATPWorldTour.com reviews some of the year’s odd moments on the ATP World Tour. 

There are plenty of things that happen during a tennis match. From winners and errors to overheads and tweeners, ATP World Tour players always entertain the crowd.

But there were also some quirky moments on the court in 2017.

At the Miami Open presented by Itau, Tommy Haas and Jiri Vesely got a special visitor after their second set.

An iguana was spotted on one of the court’s scoreboards, delaying play. Vesely had no interest in continuing play with the animal even near the court, while Haas walked right up to it for a selfie.

“Maybe the iguana got the note that this is most likely the last time playing here, and he wanted to say, ‘Hi’, and take a peek or something. I don’t know, but it was pretty cool. Of that size, I don’t think I’ve ever experienced that,” Haas said. “At one point the people were just trying to see if we can just get him off the scoreboard, but then he made an appearance and ran up and down the court as well back to the other scoreboard. So it was fun… It’s nice for him to stop by. Good-looking iguana.”

The iguana was not the only animal to interrupt play on the ATP World Tour this season. Just a couple of weeks later, a bird caused a stoppage in Monte Carlo. In the second round of the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, eventual champion Rafael Nadal was serving to move within one game of victory in the third set against Kyle Edmund when a small bird landed on the net.

While a ballperson attempted to usher it away, the bird flew onto the court’s surface instead, much to the crowd’s enjoyment.

Eventually, thanks to coaxing from the ballperson and Nadal, the bird flew to the front row behind the Spaniard and watched as he won the final two games of the match to advance to the third round.

It was not only creatures that caused quirky moments this year, though.

Usually, the only danger in stepping on the tennis court is not performing well. But Marcelo Melo learned otherwise at the Internazionali BNL D’Italia.

When the Brazilian stepped to the net while partner Lukasz Kubot served early in the second set against Henri Kontinen and John Peers, he certainly did not expect to accidentally get drilled in the head.

Kontinen and Peers would eventually win the quarter-final, 6-4, 7-6(6). And while it was a double-whammy for Melo — losing and getting knocked in the head by his teammate — Kubot/Melo would finish the year at No. 1 in the Emirates ATP Doubles Team Rankings.

But perhaps the most bizarre moment of the season came on the ATP Challenger Tour in April at the Elizabeth Moore Sarasota Open. 

It is not often that a player will crack into laughter after falling behind 0/15 in a game, but that is exactly what happened to Frances Tiafoe at 6-3, 3-2 in the second set of his first-round match against Mitchell Krueger. The cause was noise coming from an amorous couple in a nearby building, which broke Tiafoe’s concentration and interrupted play. Krueger grabbed a spare tennis ball and smacked it toward the building, drawing laughs from the crowd. 

A couple of points later, the noise was still audible. “It can’t be that good,” Tiafoe shouted in the building’s direction. He went on to win the match 6-3, 6-2.

Before John Isner settles in for his final push ahead of the new ATP World Tour campaign, he spent time on Thursday in New York — the home of the inaugural New York Open from 11-18 February — where he participated in two clinics for more than 100 local kids and attended the Brooklyn Nets game against the New York Knicks.

“It’s one of the most important things us professional players can do as pros, to give back,” said Isner, who will be playing in the New York tournament. “I want to see tennis in a healthier spot 10 years from now when I’m done playing than it is now. You want to give back as much as you can.”

However, Isner is still very much a contender on the ATP World Tour. And for a moment, his 2017 season appeared destined for a dream ending. But suddenly it came to a halt. 

The 6’10” American saved a match point in the Round of 16 at the Rolex Paris Masters to upset eventual Nitto ATP Finals champion Grigor Dimitrov before beating arguably the hottest player on the ATP World Tour, Juan Martin del Potro, in the quarter-finals. Isner was just two wins away from clinching his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title and with that his first berth in the season finale at The O2. But despite winning six more points than his opponent, his year came to an end in a stunning semi-final defeat at the hands of world No. 77 Filip Krajinovic in a third-set tie-break.

“I did finish the year well but I also finished on a very, very tough loss, so that was tough to get over,” Isner admitted. “It took some time, but I did know I had some more important things in my life to look forward to outside of tennis so [I was] very happy to put that behind me.”

In fact, he had one of the highlights of his life to look forward to: Isner got married to Madison McKinley on 2 December.

“Standing up there and saying our vows was pretty surreal,” Isner said. “When we got engaged, you picture that moment but you can’t put yourself in that situation. It’s sort of like practising for tennis. You can practise, practise, practise. But when it comes time to play a big match, you can’t really replicate that at all.”

It was a spectacular moment for the No. 17 player in the Emirates ATP Rankings, who was thrilled to have friends and family — many from his tennis ‘family’ including Sam Querrey, Steve Johnson and others — attend in South Carolina. “The wedding was amazing; it was honestly the most amazing wedding I’ve ever been to and will probably ever go to,” Querrey said.

Isner believes that entering the new season as a married man will only help his performance on the court.

“I’m a lot happier now being married than I was even being engaged,” Isner said. “I think that’s a good thing so I try to keep that in perspective — that I’m a happily married man and just enjoying that aspect of my life. It’s a very big step, so I think for my tennis career it’s going to be a boon for sure.”

And while the newlyweds spent a week in Mustique — a small island that is part of the Grenadines — for their honeymoon, it is back to work for Isner as he prepares for 2018.

“I do feel like I’m a little bit behind, but obviously I’ve had some more important things to take care of,” Isner said. “I haven’t been on the court as much as I would like but I don’t feel like I’m too rusty and I’ve stayed in good shape. That’s the most important thing for me every offseason — to keep getting stronger, get my body feeling better and I think I’ve done that very well so far, so I’ve just got to focus on the tennis.”

And despite a devastating season-ending loss for Isner, he did accomplish one major goal: the right-hander finished the season inside the Top 20 for the eighth consecutive year. The American also led the ATP World Tour in aces (1,123) for the fifth time since 2010.

“I think that [finishing in the Top 20] is something that can motivate me for 2018 as well. To really keep putting together these consistent results is pretty impressive in my opinion,” Isner said. “I want to keep doing that, but I do believe I can do even better than that as well.”

The 32-year-old, who made three Masters 1000 semi-finals this year, can do that by getting off to a fast start — he did not win back-to-back matches until May in 2017. But Isner is not putting extra pressure on himself to rocket up the Emirates ATP Rankings immediately. 

“If I have some good results, yeah, my ranking could go up,” Isner said. “But I need to be consistent throughout the whole year.”

Isner will be able to make strides toward that with a strong performance early in the year at the new ATP World Tour 250 event on Long Island: the New York Open.

“I think it’s very cool. It’s going to be a very unique venue. It’s going to be much more intimate in February versus September in Flushing Meadows,” Isner said. “I think the players love coming to the city. I do as well. So I think this event is going to be awesome and can’t wait to get it going in February.”

Continuing our Season In Review Series, ATPWorldTour.com revisits the biggest ATP World Tour comebacks of 2017:

5-tie. Novak Djokovic d. Fernando Verdasco 4-6, 7-6(7), 6-3 – Doha SF
          Borna Coric d. Philipp Kohlschreiber 5-7, 7-6(3), 7-5 – Marrakech F

Five for five at No. 5. A pair of five-match point saving thrillers kick off our list, with both Novak Djokovic and Borna Coric rallying from a set and a break down to dramatically escape from the jaws of defeat. 

For Djokovic, the drama played out in Doha at the season-opening Qatar ExxonMobil Open, where he dodged five match points against Fernando Verdasco in a second-set tie-break. The Serbian, who was No. 2 in the Emirates ATP Rankings at the time, was seeking a strong start to 2017 after relinquishing the top spot to Andy Murray to conclude the 2016 season. He would go on to lift the trophy, defeating Murray in the final, but his hopes were nearly extinguished in the semis. 

Verdasco led 6-4, 2-0, but Djokovic would conjure one of his vintage moments of magic, breaking back for 4-all in the second set and eventually forcing a tie-break. There, he erased four straight match points from 2/6 down – and another at 6/7 with a rifled return at Verdasco’s feet – to level the encounter. He would not look back from there, breaking twice in the decider to cross the finish line. It marked the third time Djokovic erased five match points in his career. He also did it against Murray in 2012 and against Florent Serra in 2009.

“It was quite a thrilling experience for me to be able to go five match points down… I’m obviously very pleased because you need these kind of matches, these kind of confidence boosters, for whatever is coming up after that,” Djokovic said. “He had three out of five match points with his serve, and three, four of the five match points he had a forehand to finish it off and he didn’t.”

While Djokovic has accumulated a history of mesmerising escapes during his 15-year career, Coric experienced his first bout of heart-stopping drama on a sun-kissed afternoon in Marrakech. You always remember your first ATP World Tour title and this was one that the Croatian will certainly never forget.

His final opponent Philipp Kohlschreiber had endured heartbreak just six weeks prior in Dubai, when he squandered seven match points against Andy Murray in the quarter-finals, and it would follow him from Asia to Africa. In search of his eighth ATP World Tour crown, the German would concede a set and a break lead on two occasions as Coric refused to go down quietly.

The drama would hit a jaw-dropping crecendo with the #NextGenATP star serving to stay in the match at 6-5 in the second set, denying five championship points. Exhibiting his steely resolve, he punched a dipping volley winner to turn aside the second match point and later fired a clutch service winner to deny the fifth. He would eventually navigate to the finish line 5-7, 7-6(3), 7-5 after two hours and 38 minutes, lifting his first ATP World Tour trophy.

“I would say that’s my biggest comeback, I’ve never saved five match points,” said Coric. “Especially in such an important match, I served very well in the big points. It’s an awesome feeling.”

4. Jack Sock d. Kyle Edmund 4-6, 7-6(4), 7-6(5) – Paris 2R

Jack Sock had one foot on a plane heading home to the United States. Trailing 1-5 in the deciding set against Kyle Edmund in the second round of the Rolex Paris Masters, his season was over. A long break filled with rest and relaxation was in the cards. In other words, it was time for some golf.

That’s how the script was written. But the 25-year-old had a plot twist that no one saw coming. Not even Sock himself had foreseen what would transpire over the next 30 minutes – and subsequent five days.

The Nebraska native completed one of the most dramatic sprints to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals in tournament history, storming back from the 1-5 deficit to stun Edmund and less than a week later hoisting the Paris trophy. With the Brit just one game from victory, Sock would turn the match around in a flash, reeling off 19 of the next 22 points to permanently shift momentum and kick off a chain reaction that led to him seizing his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 trophy and a trip to The O2.

“I should have been out first round here, in my first match, so I’m kind of just playing with house money now as you’d say,” said Sock. “I’m just enjoying it.”

Sock had entered the week in Paris at No. 24 in the Emirates ATP Race To London, before opening his bid with the Edmund victory. Another comeback would ensue against Fernando Verdasco from a set down, followed by a third escape act from a set deficit against Filip Krajinovic in the final. Sock would not only punch his ticket to London, but qualified for the semi-finals on debut.

Most Match Points Saved En Route To 2017 Title

3. Albert Ramos-Vinolas d. Andy Murray 2-6, 6-2, 7-5 – Monte-Carlo 3R

Albert Ramos-Vinolas had his back against the wall. Trailing top seed Andy Murray 0-4 in the deciding set of their Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters third round encounter, the Spaniard knew that a comeback would require something special.

“The most normal thing would be to lose the match,” said Ramos-Vinolas. “But today is one of those days that sometimes happens. I still fought. I was fighting. I was 0-4, and I thought that I need to keep playing every point. Then, at the end, I won. I don’t know what to say.”

That something special would come in the form of a stunning 2-6, 6-2, 7-5 victory, as the relentless Spaniard began to pierce holes in Murray’s defensive armoury, aided by an aggressive change in tactics. With his forehand suddenly finding openings in the court, Ramos-Vinolas flipped the third set in his favour in a flash. Blink and you missed it.

The World No. 24 reeled off seven of the last eight games, breaking Murray three times for the emotional victory. It was Ramos-Vinolas’ first win over a World No. 1, having entered the match with a 1-12 record against Top 5 opponents. The victory moved him into his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 quarter-final and he would eventually reach the title match, falling to countryman Rafael Nadal. One week later, Murray and Ramos-Vinolas met again on the clay of Barcelona, and this time it was the Scot who rallied from a set deficit to prevail.

2. Gael Monfils d. Kei Nishikori 6-7(4), 7-5, 7-6(6) – Montreal 2R

It’s been nearly four months since Gael Monfils dramatically saved four match points to edge Kei Nishikori at the Rogers Cup. And most fans still can’t pick their jaws off the floor.

Monfils produced the stunning comeback in typical Monfils fashion, striking a pair of clutch, mesmerising hot shots in the deciding tie-break, en route to the second round victory. The Frenchman was a hot shot machine with his back against the wall on a sunny Wednesday afternoon, energising the Montreal faithful as he plotted his comeback from 2-5 down in the second set and 3-5 down in the third. Nishikori served for the match three times and Monfils had an answer on each occasion.

And with the Japanese one point from victory at 6/3 in the third-set tie-break, Monfils nailed a down-the-line backhand that kissed the sideline. Moments later, he muscled a down-the-line forehand winner from deep behind the baseline to stave off his fourth consecutive match point. In front of an electric atmosphere on Banque Nationale Court, the Frenchman converted the first match point of his own with a blasted forehand winner down the line.

“It’s a good victory for many reasons,” said Monfils. “It’s a big revenge, because last year around this time I had the same thing actually against Kei. I was up 6/2 in the tie-break in the [Rio] Olympics quarter-finals and I lost the tie-break. So I know exactly how he feels. Also, last year, a bit before, I played him in Miami. I also had five match points and I lost it 7-6 in the third. I’m more than happy because I fought through the toughness, because it was tough for me. It was a bit like a rollercoaster.”

The victory was even more special considering it was Monfils’ first in his FedEx ATP Head2Head series against Nishikori, improving to 1-3. It also marked the first time he had rallied from a set down against a Top 10 opponent in seven years.

1. Andy Murray d. Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-7(4), 7-6(18), 6-1 – Dubai QF

Philipp Kohlschreiber was one point from securing the 400th match win of his career at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. But for Andy Murray, there was no room for sentiment on a Thursday evening at The Aviation Club. Murray denied Kohlschreiber’s milestone quest with a history-making performance of his own, saving seven match points in a marathon 31-minute second set tie-break. 

The World No. 1 dodged knockout blow after knockout blow in the 38-point record-tying tie-break, won by Murray 20/18. It equaled five other epic tie-breaks of the same score since such scores were first kept in 1991.

Kohlschreiber got off to a fast start, pushing Murray from corner to corner and striking winner after winner. After taking the opener, he would continue to grab the upper hand in the second. But a Murray moment of brilliance in the ensuing tie-break would turn the tide. Down match point at 8/9, he managed to cut an audacious forehand drop shot to spin past the tramlines and a bewildered Kohlschreiber (see below). Heavy serving and aggressive play fended off a further six match points and he would force a decider after an 84-minute set. Murray would go on to prevail 6-7(4), 7-6(18), 6-1.

“It’s obviously a special match to win because of how it went,” said Murray. “I’ll probably never play another tie-break like that again. I have been playing on the tour for 11, 12 years now, and nothing’s been close to that.

“There were definitely some unbelievable points in that second set tie-break, but in general I think the level was extremely high. He was hitting the ball so hard tonight from both sides. Any time he had the opportunity, he was ripping the ball and made it really, really tough.”

It was the second-most match points saved in a tour-level match this year. Malek Jaziri edged Reilly Opelka 5-7, 7-6(14), 6-1 in Atlanta, saving eight match points. 

Murray went on to win the Dubai title, defeating Fernando Verdasco in the final. It was his lone crown of the 2017 season, which was cut short due to a hip injury in July.