Isner seals unlikely win to complete an American double
More local joy follows triumph for Stephens Zverev fails to match his opponent’s fierce serve
The final match at Miami’s Crandon Park produced arguably the most unexpected champion in the history of the event, as John Isner overcame world No5 Sascha Zverev in a three-set tussle last night.
The tournament will hike its way 20 miles to the north next year, leaving this unique and muchloved venue and setting up a new base at the Hard Rock Stadium complex that is also home to American football’s Miami Dolphins.
But just before tennis took its leave of the leafy island paradise of Key Biscayne, Isner nipped in to become the first male American winner here since Andy Roddick in 2004. After Sloane Stephens had taken the women’s title on Saturday, this was the most complete weekend for American tennis since that same tournament in 2004, when Serena Williams had preceded Roddick into the winner’s circle.
Yesterday’s match was the third Masters final in a row to be claimed by an American male, whether from the southern or northern continent; at 32, Isner is also the oldest first-time Masters champion.
Europeans had dominated these nine annual events for a decade, with the last ‘new world’ winner being Argentina’s David Nalbandian in Paris in 2007. But American Jack Sock broke the sequence last year, also in Paris, and thus set the stage for another Argentine – Juan Martin del Potro – to triumph in Indian Wells a fortnight ago.
As Isner approached his opening match against Jiri Vesely, it is hard to imagine a single person backing him to win the title – not even the man himself. Up until that moment, Isner had played seven matches on the tour this season and won only one, against Moldovan journeyman Radu Albot. He stood at No17 in the world, but only No294 in the socalled ‘Race to London’, which tots up rankings points from the present season only.
Further struggles afflicted him against Vesely, as he felt a muscle twang in a groin. He soldiered through with strapping – a rare case of the much-maligned medical time-out system working as it should – and then began to gather momentum, driving through his next four matches without dropping a set.
Against Zverev, Isner found himself on the back foot after losing a scrappy first-set tie-break, in which five successive points went to the receiver. This was particularly odd given that Isner stands 6ft 10in, and possesses a serve generally viewed as the best in the history of the game, while Zverev is 6ft 6in and scarcely less lethal in his delivery.
Yet Isner’s serve was always the more secure during regular games. He faced only three break points, none of which Zverev was able to take, and brought up 12 of his own. A break in each of the second and third sets enabled him to secure a 6-7, 6-4, 6-4 victory, lift the biggest title of his career, and surge back to No 9 in the world – a figure that matches his previous career high.
“I never thought I would be in this moment considering how I was playing coming into this event,” said Isner, a religious man who wrote “He is risen” on the camera lens at the conclusion of the match.
“For me to come out the winner in the last men’s singles match ever here is pretty unique,” Isner added. “I don’t talk about it too much, but whenever my wife and I are in town, we always go to church. I missed the service this morning, of course, but it’s very, very special – an incredible day.”
There were jeers whenever next year’s move to Hard Rock Stadium was mentioned in front of the crowd. Stephens put it well on Saturday when she said “There are a lot of things that are special about this tournament, starting with the massive iguanas. I’m definitely going to miss it, because Key Biscayne is a hidden gem.”