5 Memorable Matches at Roland Garros

#2 Michael Chang vs Ivan Lendl, Fourth Round, 1989

Michael Chang

Michael Chang was just 17 when he took on the mighty Ivan Lendl in the fourth round of the French Open in 1989. Lendl won the first two sets easily 6-4, 6-4. Chang managed to win the third set, and pushed the match into the decider by winning the fourth set.

By then he had a severe case of cramping and was dehydrated. He even thought of quitting in the final set. But he dug deep into his energy reserves and rallied on with different techniques to win the last set 6-3, thus causing a major upset.

Tennis fans of that era still remember the unexpected underhand serve that Chang hit when he was trailing 15-30 in a crucial game. Lendl was totally confused and hit a very poor return ultimately losing the point. He used other techniques like lobs and receiving serves from the service line to throw Lendl off his rhythm. It was a memorable match as it had all the characteristics of a classic David and Goliath story.

Chang went on to win the title that year and became the youngest man to win a Grand Slam title. His win was a big boost for US tennis too, which had not seen any male Grand Slam winner for the previous five years.

Here are the highlights of the last two sets of this amazing match -