The Last Match

by Anna Ziegler

"Played out under the bright lights of the US OPEN semifinals, The Last Match pits rising Russian star Sergei Sergeyev against American great Tim Porter in an epic showdown that follows tennis titans through pivotal moments in their lives both on and offthe court. This gripping, fast-paced story captures the intense world of competitive sports, and human rivalry, and what it means to want something -- and the lengths we will go to in order to feel relevant, important, and young"--Page [4] of cover.

Genres: Plays

61 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2018

Reviews

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am basing this review on a performance I saw. I’m assuming the performance did not drastically vary from the play as written.

This is a clever telling of a story of two tennis players, a top-ranked American nearing retirement, and an up-and-coming Russian player trying to live up to his potential. The story is told in snippets of the past relived throughout a finals match at the US Open.

The unfolding of the story is very well done. However, the story itself is a bit melodramatic. The aging star facing a hard-scrabble up-and-comer is a well-worn path and the play includes all the tropes you would expect. I also thought the women in their lives were rather vaguely formed – one wanting nothing more than to have a baby (but suffering many miscarriages), and the other obsessed by ideas of beauty.

It’s an entertaining work, exploring some interesting ideas about aging, purpose and desire. But there are few surprises.

[Ally Varitek · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a former tennis player, I appreciated the deeper look at an athlete's mind on the court. At times a bit exaggerated, most of the time equivalent to the plethora of depths the mind runs through: win or lose, family or sport, life or death. I found myself drawn in particular to Mallory and her empathic quality. The dialogue is a fact-paced return when escalating the action and the leisurely waiting after a lob in its more pensive moments. A recommended read for sure.

[Aaron Thomas · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sure. This is, like, fine. I dunno. Meh. Nothing to write home about. Tennis, fatherhood, babies. The whole thing feels just really straight to me. And at one point the main character said "I effed up" and I kind of couldn't forgive him for that. I don't think I can ever love a character who would say such a thing.

[Grace Wagner · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted this to be better than it was. It did a great job of keeping me enthralled in the game but I wanted more time spent there than we were allowed. Also the ending kind of left me unsatisfied and unsure of the arcs present. The timeline was intriguing.

[Evan Herman-Chin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read an advance copy in college and then saw the show a year later in it's Off-Broadway debut. Tim and Sergei are interesting comparisons, especially the way they look at their careers. Good dialogue. Would read (or watch) again.

[Tom Holehan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two tennis pros and the women in their lives tell their stories with a tennis match as backdrop. Good, sharp dialogue even as you keep expecting more. I saw this at Roundabout off-Broadway and it was entertaining and well-acted.