Tim Henman last night admitted his epic five-set victory over Carlos Moya was up there with the best of them.

And he said it fully justified his decision to laugh away suggestions he should retire.

Oxfordshire's British No 2 carried on from where he left off on Centre Court on Monday night as he toughed it out for a stunning 6-3, 1-6, 5-7, 6-2, 13-11 win over the 30-year-old Spaniard.

Once again, the level of play in just over an hour of tension-filled high drama yesterday meant that, although it was only a first-round clash, it could well turn out to be the finest match of this year's Wimbledon.

"It's up there with the best of my matches here because of the quality of tennis," Henman conceded after what had amounted to the equivalent of the penalty shoot-out.

"The tone was set on Monday night.

"I thought about the situation, stopping at 5-5. I felt that, if I'd come out and won eight points or lost eight points straightaway, it was just going to be an anti-climax, because it was such an incredible atmosphere.

"But I think it speaks volumes the way we both came out and really continued where we left off. The quality of the serving was so good.

"Right up until the last point, there just weren't really many rallies that were finishing with too many unforced errors. He served so well, I felt I volleyed well and made some good returns."

Picking up the baton again in front of an entirely new crowd was testing for both players.

The first 13 games went with serve but Henman eventually ended the nail-biting contest by taking his third match point of the day, and his seventh overall, when Moya double-faulted.

"I'd never been in that position before, stopping at 5-all in the fifth," Henman added.

"I was talking with my trainer and, if anything, we found it pretty amusing. But I slept well. I got into bed and the next thing it was 8.45 and my alarm was going off.

"But of course I was wondering about my strategy on the practice court this morning, and where I was going to serve. When you step up to the line, as long as you're committed to the plan of what you're going to do for that first point, you execute it and see what happens.

"If you get distracted and start thinking about the score, thinking about the match points that have gone begging, then you're not going to do a good job of playing the next point."

As well as the 14,000 packed into a roof-less Centre Court, around 10,000 people were creating an amazing atmosphere on Henman Hill.

Aston Tirrold's most famous resident said that, while others had doubted him, the four-times semi-finalist had never lost self-belief that he could thrill his fans again in SE19.

"This place is so special to me. I've had many experiences here. I always believe that good things are going to happen."

He added: "I feel so comfortable out on Centre Court that I was able to raise my game. And I needed to.

Moya caught me by surprise, not just with the quality of his serving, but also on his tactics. I really didn't expect him to come to the net so much."

If it was gripping stuff on Monday night, it was no less so yesterday when the pair resumed at 5-5 in the fifth set.

In considerably brighter conditions than when the players had slugged it out in the gloom 17 hours earlier, the advantage Henman enjoyed in serving first in the set was only briefly obvious as both men dominated on serve.

There was the occasional deuce, but in the main the quality of serving proved too good. It soom became 8-8, then 9-9, then 10-10.

The crowd was willing Henman to win with their customary cries of "Come on Tim", but a great many of them were also enjoying the contest so much, they didn't want it to finish.

It was Moya who got the first sniffs of a break with two break points in a momentous 23rd game, but Henman, showing enormous courage, saved both with aces, the second of them incredibly with a big-kicking second serve ace!

The pressure was back on the 30-year-old Spaniard as a beautifully executed lob presented Henman with two more match points.

He couldn't take them as again Moya served big, but after forcing a seventh match point, the pressure told and the former world No 1 double faulted.

"I wasn't expecting that!" Henman admitted. "But it was gratefully accepted, gratefully received."

After toppling the 25th seed, 74th-ranked Henman now faces another Spaniard, Feliciano Lopez, in the second round today, although the weather forecast suggests further disruptions to play.

That may mean he gets some much-needed extra rest.

Henman said: "Lopez has got a bit more of a grass-court pedigree than Moya. He's a big-serving leftie. If I can get myself to the net and make him make backhand passes - that's my best tactics, I think."