Marin Cilic beat Sam Querrey 17-15 in the final set of a dramatic match Saturday which broke the record for the second-longest encounter in Wimbledon history.

Croatian 16th seed Cilic beat Querrey of the United States 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 6-7 (7-2) 6-7 (7-3) 17-15 in a match that lasted five hours and 31 minutes.

They were duelling in the dusk on the 4,000-seater Court 2 show court when Cilic finally sealed the match at 9:02pm.

The final set lasted two hours and seven minutes.

The match surpassed the mark of five hours, 28 minutes set in 1989 when Greg Holmes beat Todd Witsken 5-7 6-4 7-6 (7-5) 4-6 14-12.

The all-time record at Wimbledon — or anywhere else — by a long distance remains the epic 2010 encounter at the All England Club between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut.

Isner won 6-4 3-6 6-7 (9-7) 7-6 (7-3) 70-68 in in 11 hours and five minutes in a match that took three days to complete.

Cilic got himself to match point by finishing off a 29-stroke rally and won it when Querrey fired a return of serve long. The pair hugged at the net and Cilic raised his fist in celebration.