Isner and Mahut prepare for life after the marathon

The Queen visited Wimbledon for the first time in 33 years on Thursday, Andy Murray made short work of his Finnish second round opponent Jarkko Nieminen, and Rafael Nadal followed Roger Federer's lead and needed five sets to beat Robin Haase. But all of them were upstaged by the climax of the extraordinary game between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut on Court 18.

The pair resumed on Thursday afternoon with the score 59 games all in the fifth set and the match already 10 hours old. The two men duked it out for another 65 minutes before Mahut finally cracked. Shortly before 5pm Isner won the 980th point of the match to break the Frenchman's serve and win the record-breaking encounter 6-4, 3-6, 6-7, 7-6, 70-68.

Among the records that the match now holds are:

• Longest match: 11 hours, 5 minutes
• Longest set: 8 hours, 11 minutes
• Most games in a match: 183
• Most games in a set: 138
• Most aces: 215 (Isner 112, Mahut 103)
• Most consecutive service games held: 168 (84 each)

After the game there was a special presentation in which the players and umpire Mohamed Lahyani, who sat through every single point, were given special mementoes by the All-England Club "in recognition of this quite extraordinary, unbelievable match." All three received a 10-inch Tipperary Crystal Bowl, which will be engraved, and six Waterford Crystal Wimbledon Champagne flutes.

They were then talked, or cajoled in the case of dejected Mahut, into posing next to the scoreboard. They looked like latter-day game fisherman who had reeled in a record-breaking marlin.

The crowd hung on their every word as the players gave interviews on the court and tried to explain the emotions they felt after the game.

But Isner and Mahut had better get used to it, for they are now inexorably linked and the pair could probably make a very good living simply playing exhibition matches against each other or making after-dinner speeches.

And the Wimbledon glasses will not be the last gifts they receive on account of their exploits. Mahut is set to become the first of the pair to reap the commercial rewards of the marathon. He has been offered a free holiday in Mauritius by French tour operator Club Med.

Their game could end up being as lucrative as a Grand Slam final if they are prepared to cash in on the marketing opportunities that will come their way.

The bookies have already started offering odds on which brands offer them endorsement deals. According to the Telegraph the favourites are Red Bull (6-1); Andrex (10-1); Viagra (12-1); Duracell (16-1); Long Life (25-2), with BP 100-1 outsiders.

But Wimbledon is not yet over for either player. Mahut is obviously a glutton for punishment and was back on court later that evening for a doubles match with his partner Arnaud Clement. When play was suspended they had just lost the first set on a tie break to Britain's Colin Fleming and Ken Skupski 7-6 (7-4).

Isner was luckier as his doubles match has been carried over to today. But he also has the second round of the singles to worry about. ·