The history of the tiebreak: The tiebreak was created in the 1950’s
In the 1950s, James Van Halen, the founder of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, invented the tiebreak to shorten tennis sets and matches, making them more suitable for TV broadcast and scheduling. The idea was to have a nine-point tiebreak when players reached six games all in a set. A sudden-death point would be played at 4-4 to determine the winner. Van Halen tested this format in an invitation professional event in Newport in 1965, where players like Rod Laver and Ken Rosewall participated. Mike Davis won the first tiebreak in tennis history on July 10, 1965.
Despite initial interest from TV broadcasters, it took until 1970 for the tiebreak to be introduced in major events. Bill Talbert, the director of the US Open, decided to implement the nine-point sudden-death tiebreak in every set. This move was seen as a significant step forward for tennis, providing a finish line and ensuring matches would not drag on for hours. Players were now required to improve their return of serve skills. However, not all players were enthusiastic about the sudden-death tiebreak, with some, like Laver, considering it unfair.
Evolution of the tiebreak: The US Open witnesses 26 tiebreaks on the first day
The US Open in early September 1970 saw the introduction of the new tiebreak rule, with 26 nine-point tiebreaks played on the first day of the tournament. Despite the drama for spectators, players continued to criticize the sudden-death tiebreak. In 1975, a new tiebreak format was designed by Peter Jones from the LTA, featuring a change of sides every six points for fairness.
Throughout the 1970s, most tennis events adopted the tiebreak. Wimbledon, for example, started playing tiebreaks at 6-6 in 1979. The Davis Cup was the last major event to introduce the tiebreak in 1989.
