After twenty years as world champion, the end of Australian Rob Fahey's unparalleled time at the top of real tennis could be drawing near.
The ancient sport, which allows players to hit off walls and tiers, has been dominated by Hobart-born Fahey as long as anyone.
In a contest dating back to 1740, that's no mean feat.
The Real Tennis World Championship claims to be the oldest sporting contest in the world.
Players use asymmetrical wooden racquets and harder balls than in lawn tennis, making serve-volleying a life-threatening tactic.
But Fahey has belied all-comers - and that tough ball - to win the world championship eleven times.
This week will determine whether at the twelfth time of asking, 46-year-old Fahey has met his match.
His opponent, American Camden Riviere, has already taken the world number one ranking from Fahey and is set on claiming the world crown.
In his fifth decade, and twenty years Riviere's senior, it could be Fahey's age that proves decisive.
"I'm as fit as I've always been but you slow down and your reactions change, your eyesight changes and the rest of it," Fahey said after his Australian Open win earlier this year.
"But reading the court, what the ball is going to do, you never lose any of that and that's a key part of it."
Riviere has emerged victorious from a series of elimination matches to be Fahey's opponent, bringing several family members from South Carolina to watch the contest.
The championship kicks off with the opening sets at Richmond's Royal Melbourne Tennis Club on Tuesday night.
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