As his career winds down, 37-year-old John Isner is looking to leave his final mark at the tour’s biggest tournaments. That starts with the most famous of them all, The Championships at Wimbledon.
The North Carolina native has focused his sights on the Slams and Masters 1000 level tournaments. A father of two, Isner has prioritized his family over tennis these last few years but has shown he still is a force on the court.
Isner had his most successful Slam run at Wimbledon back in 2018. It was the only Slam semifinal appearance of his career. With that said, that was the only time in 12 tries where he reached the second week at the All England Club.
Having not played any lead-up grass-court tournaments before Wimbledon, many questioned how Isner would fair. It was the correct question to ask as the American was pushed to five sets in Round 1 against French qualifier Enzo Couacaud. Isner came back from two sets to one down and prevailed 6-7 7-6 4-6 6-3 7-5. He tallied 53 aces and 96 total winners.
His Round 2 match against Britain’s own Andy Murray was another tight one. Isner ousted Murray in four sets for the first win of his career over the two-time Wimbledon champion. Through two matches, John Isner has been on the court for six hours and 37 matches. However, these long matches are not necessarily taxing for Isner, who tends to end points very quickly.
John Isner at Wimbledon 2022
Looking ahead, the veteran American must really wish he was in a different part of the draw. Seeded players have gone down left and right through the first four days at Wimbledon but Isner has a pair of NextGen ringers ahead of him. He will play #10 seed Jannik Sinner in Round 3 before a potential meeting with Spanish phenom Carlos Alcaraz in Round 4.
Looking to the match against the Italian, Isner should feel optimistic about his chances. Before this week, 20-year-old Jannik Sinner was 0-5 in his career in tour-level main draw matches on grass. This week he had two solid four-set wins over Stan Wawrinka and Mikael Ymer to move him into Round 3.
Isner and Sinner have squared off two times before, splitting the matchups. I believe this match will once again be a tight one. If Isner can serve and volley the way he did against Andy Murray, he has a great shot at advancing. With that said, I believe the Italian is more equipped to pass the American at the net than Murray was.
Should Isner get by Sinner, he would likely face the aforementioned Alcaraz in Round 4. Alcaraz, who was not the better player in his Round 1 victory over Jan-Lennard Struff, has very little grass court experience. This would certainly favor the American who has a 51-25 career record on the grass.
A potential quarterfinal matchup against #1 seed Novak Djokovic is the ceiling of John Isner’s Wimbledon stay.
Whatever happens with John Isner over these next few matches, be sure to soak it in and enjoy it. Arguably the greatest server in the history of the sport and the man who gave us the longest match in Wimbledon history is winding down on what has been a fantastic career. The longevity of a man of his stature is incredible, and he has the personality to match.
Main Photo from Getty.
