With the clock striking midnight, James Blake’s career closed in fitting fashion — in a marathon match, a fifth-set tiebreaker and a roaring, adoring crowd at the U.S. Open chanting “USA’’ in the final moments.
A rollercoaster career ended with a topsy-turvy first-round match with the usual ebbs and flows that marked his unlikely career. The Yonkers native blew a two-sets-to-love lead to the 6-foot-9 serving monster Ivo Karlovic of Croatia and lost in a fifth-set tiebreaker.
The match lasted 3 hours, 24 minutes with Karlovic winning 6-7, 3-6, 6-4, 7-6, 7-6, pounding 38 aces and ending Blake’s career at half-filled but fully rowdy Armstrong Stadium that did a wave late in the fifth set.
There were more tears when it was over at 12:06 a.m. just like at Monday’s press conference announcing the 33-year-old’s retirement .
“I don’t know when it’s going to hit me,’’ the former Harvard star told the crowd, welling up in tears. “I don’t think I’ll be sleeping much tonight. I see the clock — it’s past midnight. I know it’s late and this is the last time I’ll have this in my life. I want to appreciate everyone of you for still being here.’’
Another loud roar rang up into the Flushing night and chants of his name.
“That ovation makes me realize that all the hard work was worth it, playing before you fans,’’ Blake added. “I can think of the things I could’ve done to win this match, but I’ll still think of this as a happy moment.’’
The cover of yesterday’s tennis program showed a picture of the 100th-ranked Blake with the words “The Last Hurrah’’ and so it was.
But it took a while to take place. The Blake match didn’t start until 8:25 p.m. on Armstrong because of the earlier rain delays, beginning right after the Venus Williams-Jie Zheng three-set slugfest. The match had been scheduled for 5:30 p.m. when the stadium would have been overflowing.
It was ironic that Blake followed Williams, who also could have played her last Open match last night.
“Hopefully this won’t be my lasting memory, losing a two-sets-to-love lead,’’ Blake said.
The smaller version of the “J-Block’’ — his rooting section — was in place, though, chanting “Here we go James, here we go’’ moments before he served to start the match.
Blake exposed Karlovic’s net game in the first two sets, hitting a number of passing shots. But Blake fell apart, losing the third set and then got torched in the fourth-set tiebeaker falling behind 6-1 and losing 7-2, with a weak forehand into the twine.
In the fifth-set tiebreaker, Karlovic played much smoother, grabbing 5-1 lead. Ironically, Blake challenged match point just as he challenged the match’s first point — and lost both. Karlovic’s final ace bounced on the sideline, according to the replays.
Karlovic was up a break, 4-2 in the fifth set when Blake broke back to put the match on serve. But it wasn’t before Blake had blown a love-40 lead, losing three straight break points. That’s Blake in a nutshell. He still hung on to win the game, putting away a 16-ball rally with a rare forehand volley winner as the fans were in a tizzy.
Karlovic held to move ahead 5-4. Serving to keep from retirement, Blake fought off a 15-30 deficit and tied it at 5-5 and as the clock struck midnight. The players entered a fifth-set tiebreaker, with fans chanting USA.
* This might not be the last we have heard of Blake at this fortnight. There’s a chance he’ll join the ESPN’s Open coverage as sort of a trial run, The Post has learned. Blake, 33, made no secret at Monday’s retirement press conference he would be intrigued by working in TV in the future.
“We welcome him to join and be a part of our coverage as a guest, but haven’t done anything more,’’ ESPN spokesman Dave Nagle said.