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When 5-foot-9 Dudi Sela loses to 6-11 Ivo Karlovic, he can appreciate the humor

Unusual handshake after Karlovic defeated Sela 7-6, 7-6 in Bogotá on Thursday.

One of the compelling things about tennis is that there are no age or weight classes. Whatever their age, size, weight or reach, the two players compete on a level playing field and bring their individual skill sets to the court.

But you have to appreciate the sense of humor displayed by Israel's 5-foot-9 Dudi Sela after a 7-6, 7-6 defeat to 6-11 Croatian Ivo Karlovic in Bogotá on Thursday.

 

What made it even funnier is that the two players were dressed identically - white shirt, dark shorts, white baseball cap.

Karlovic, the 35-year-old defending champ in Bogotá, broke into a big smile when he saw Sela head over to get a chair, quickly realizing what he was up to.

There is plenty of photographic evidence of these types of handshakes during Karlovic's long career. Here's one with American Tim Smyczek, who also is listed at 5-9.

American Tim Smyczek (listed at 5-foot-9) shakes hands with Ivo Karlovic (6-foot-11) after Smyczek's win at the 2013 Australian Open. (Reuters)
American Tim Smyczek (listed at 5-foot-9) shakes hands with Ivo Karlovic (6-foot-11) after Smyczek's win at the 2013 Australian Open. (Reuters)

Taller isn't always better, though. Smyczek defeated Karlovic 6-4, 7-6(5), 7-5 in their first-round match at the Australian Open last year.

We also look back to the 2008 Australian Open, when someone finally figured out that it would be a stroke of genius to get the two tallest tennis players on the planet, Karlovic and American John Isner, to team up in doubles.

The two giants team up at the Australian Open in 2008.
The two giants team up at the Australian Open in 2008.

They played two Argentines, Juan Pablo Brzezicki and Agustin Calleri, who are not overly tall but not exactly small, either.

The two giants in action in doubles at the 2008 Australian Open. They lost in straight sets in the first round.
The two giants in action in doubles at the 2008 Australian Open. They lost in straight sets in the first round.

It was kind of disastrous even if they were the most imposing doubles team ever. They lost 7-6, 6-3. And the experiment has not since been repeated.

Another funny tidbit about that: Karlovic had always been listed at 6-10, Isner at 6-9. A couple of years ago Isner declared that he was, in fact, 6-10, which amused Karlovic. Now, Karlovic is listed at 6-11. Hey, if you can be No. 1 in the world at something, you should maximize it.