Isner wins Miami Open title

KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. — John Isner won the biggest title of his 14-year career Sunday, holding every service game and rallying past Alexander Zverev 6-7 (4), 6-4, 6-4 in the Miami Open final.

Isner, 32, previously had been 0-3 in ATP Masters 1000 finals.

His breakthrough came in the last singles match on Key Biscayne before the Miami Open moves next year to the NFL Dolphins' stadium.

Isner, who was seeded 14th, became the first American man to win the tournament since Andy Roddick in 2010. Isner joined Sloane Stephens, who won the women's title Saturday, for the first U.S. sweep in the event since 2004, when the champions were Roddick and Serena Williams.

The start of the last game was delayed by the crowd's chants of “US-A!” Isner then held at love, and on the final three points he smacked aces, giving him 18 for the match and 79 for the tournament.

Isner's title run surprised even him because he arrived at Key Biscayne with a record of 1-6 this year, including losses to players with rankings of 60, 62, 78 and 91.

He played an almost flawless match to beat Juan Martin del Potro in the semifinals and was just good enough against the fourth-seeded Zverev, a 20-year-old German player who was bidding for his third Masters 1000 title in the last 12 months.

The 6-10 Isner's serve allowed him to overcome inconsistent returning, a succession of botched volleys and shaky play at crunch time.