Maxime Cressy hit 15 aces in a three-set loss to compatriot Christopher Eubanks on Thursday. One of those aces never hit his strings.
With windy conditions wreaking havoc at the BNP Paribas Open, Cressy’s ball toss hung up in the air for a fraction longer than the American expected, leading to a framed serve off the top of his racquet.
But from there, the wind — and the wicked spin created off the frame — worked in his favour as he delivered a once-in-a-lifetime ace at just 26 mph. Like a feather in the wind, the ball floated just over the net, then bounced backwards and sideways to leave Eubanks no chance.
“Whatever this is needs to be given a name and added to the lexicon of tennis,” said Twitter user @film_zoe, commenting on a TennisTV tweet which is now approaching half a million views.
We may have a moniker, thanks to @Tquick101, who offered “Cressy Crescent.”
Hawkeye’s take on this 26mph beauty 🤪@lacress97 #IndianWells pic.twitter.com/msu5A5gYWG
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) March 11, 2022
Other Twitter users shared videos of similar happy accidents on serve, though none could quite match the perfect placement and tremendous spin of Cressy’s offering.
There was also a debate over whether the American did indeed serve the slowest ace in tennis history, with some suggesting an underhand ace might beat it out in the slow-motion “race.”
The serve drew a smile from Cressy, who was leading, 7-5, 3-4 at the time. But Eubanks got the last laugh, saving three match points in a second-set tie-break on the way to a 5-7, 7-6(8), 6-4 victory in the opening round. The qualifier will face eighth seed Casper Ruud on Saturday.