Tennis players attempt to smash Guinness record

IT’S GAME on for four leading Irish tennis players who are aiming to get in the record books by playing for 60 hours nonstop.

The Guinness Book of Records attempt will take place in Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club with the first ball served at 8am on Friday, July 13 and, all being well, continuing until the rackets are put down at 8pm on Sunday, July 15.

And it’s all in a good cause with funds raised going to the Enjoy Tennis programme which has to-date enabled almost 1,000 players with a disability to learn and play the game in 70 clubs around Ireland. It is hoped that the attempt will raise at least €20,000. The current World Record is held by four Dutch players who played nonstop for 58 hours in 2013.

David Mullins and James Cluskey, former Davis Cup players and Daniel O’Neill and Luke McGuire, both members of Trinity Tennis Club, will be taking on the challenge.

“Other than Luke, we have not attempted anything like this on a tennis court in the past,” explained David Mullins. “We have trained ourselves over many years to play the sport at a fast tempo and with a great deal of variety.

“For this challenge we will have to play the match at a slow pace, with little or no variety of shots and over a long period of time to conserve energy. Dealing with the monotony of this slow-paced game will be one of the biggest challenges.”

David said they had been in training for the arduous attempt for several months and included a dry run on Friday, June 22 when the four played overnight from 9pm to 6am on Saturday morning to “acclimatise” to things like sleep deprivation and exhaustion.

During the record attempt – when they hope to break the existing record by at least two hours – the players will take a 40-minute break after being on court for eight straight hours (they are entitled to a five-minute break every hour) during which they can rest eat and use the bathroom.

Two independent witnesses will be present at all times to ensure that the strict rules set down by the Guinness Book of World Records are adhered to.