We had another incredible night session at a Grand Slam here. If this continues for another night or two, American tennis fans won't have slept in a week. It had everything that a Grand Slam has needed in the past few years–a Gael Monfils entertaining epic and a Lleyton Hewitt heartbreaker.

Of course, Day 5 also had a day session that produced more drama than the previous night. Early losses for Roger Federer at Grand Slams are no longer unthinkable, but they are still a rarity. Of course, it helps when Andreas Seppi wins the match on such an incredible shot. None of the favorites have been dominant this tournament. Nadal has struggled heavily. Djokovic hasn't faced anyone who could even present a challenge yet. Andy Murray and Tomas Berdych look solid. And Federer just crashed out in pretty pedestrian fashion. This tournament is shaping up for a wild finish, and it is definitely possible to see a surprise champion.

Honor Roll:

Marcos Baghdatis (lost to Dimitrov 64 36 63 36 36)- I know he lost, but this was a solid showing from Baghdatis, who hasn't played this well in a long time. Hopefully this spurs a resurgence from Baghdatis, who is finally looking like he can become a top player again. He was still a long way away from hitting the winners that he once could. But it was very nice to see him play this well again.

Milos Raonic (defeated Young 64 76 63)- For a top-10 player, Raonic flies under the radar way too much. He shouldn't, though. He's not just another tall guy with a huge serve and nothing else . He plays a solid baseline game. He won't break opponents often, but he can consistently put pressure on opponents' service games. He played a solid match against Donald Young, being untouchable on serve and doing more than enough on return. He's going to be dangerous moving forward.

Andreas Seppi (defeated Federer 64 76 46 76)- Seppi was 0-10 against Federer coming into this match, but he didn't play like it. His touch was incredible and his shot selection nearly perfect. His serve was very effective, and he handled himself well against Federer from the baseline. It was a huge win for him, and now the draw is open for him to go even further.

Lost Their Homework:

Roger Federer- Wow. That's just about all you can say after that. Federer wasn't bad per se, but it certainly wasn't a Roger Federer performance. Overall, he played that match at a top-30 level. That will win a lot of early-round matches at Grand Slams, but it's not at all what we expect to see from Roger Federer, and certainly at a Grand Slam. Just to put this in perspective, this was Federer's earliest loss in Melbourne since 2001. He had reached the fourth round or better here for 13 consecutive years. And I haven't done the research to confirm, but I think it is very likely that Federer's nine double faults are the highest in a match in his professional career. 

Gael Monfils (lost to Janowicz 46 61 76 36 36)- For a match that had a ton of winners, this was fairly poorly played by both players. Neither played the most tactically brilliant match, to put it nicely. It was a great exhibition of shot-making. But both players, especially Monfils, should have been able to win this match if they had played it smarter.

Grigor Dimitrov - I know, it's weird to put the loser of a match in the honor roll and to say that the winner lost their homework. But everything is relative. Dimitrov is a top 10 player and should be expected to win this one much more easily. As well as Baghdatis played, he was not at a top-10 level. If Dimitrov wants to beat Murray in the next round, he needs to do better. He could never find a real rhythm on serve, which almost cost him the match. Not having a good serving rhythm is an absolute recipe for disaster against Murray.

Match of the Day:

Painful as it is, the best match of the last 24 hours was clearly Lleyton Hewitt's heartbreaking loss to Benjamin Becker. Hewitt reaching fifth sets has become a trend in recent years. He fights to the end of every match and every point. Sometimes, though, his body just can't take it.

This match was different. This wasn't Hewitt in a dogfight. The first two sets of this match were vintage Hewitt. His return was incredible. His shot choices were perfect. He was playing a level of tennis that could give any player in the world trouble. After two sets, it looked like Hewitt could actually make a deep run here.
Then the third set hit, and we remembered why Hewitt's ranking has plummeted these past few years. His body just stopped responding. It was like he ran into a wall physically. The choices were right. The movement and motions just weren't there. No matter how hard he tried and how much the crowd tried to keep him in it, Lleyton just couldn't do it.

This may actually be a turning point for Hewitt. This was different from every Grand Slam loss of his in the past. I have never commented on when or whether he should retire and I never will. It's his decision and prerogative. However, I will say that this was the first match where I honestly wondered if it makes Hewitt think that he no longer belongs on the court in Grand Slams. I, along with many fans, hope that Hewitt will be able to play for a long, long time. But now I'm beginning to wonder just how long that might be.