John Isner was just happy to be there, a Davis Cup tagalong with a front row seat for the 2007 World Group Final in Portland, Ore.
Only a few months earlier, the altitudinous American had reached the NCAA singles final and led the University of Georgia to yet another team title, the program’s fifth. Captain Patrick McEnroe’s U.S. contingent had just ended a 12-year dry-spell by clinching the Cup, and as a practice partner, Isner got to be part of a jubilant, champagne-soaked press conference, seated alongside the likes of vets Andy Roddick, James Blake and the Bryan twins.
The former Bulldog had just turned pro and was already being hyped as the future of American tennis, though some in the room weren’t quite ready to anoint him as such.
“You’ve got to beat me before you become the future,” warned Roddick, glaring down the table at the 22-year-old newcomer.
Two years would pass before Isner managed to do so, though it was definitely a statement win. Matched up with Roddick in the third round of the 2009 US Open, the North Carolina native pulled off a 7-6(3), 6-3, 3-6, 5-7, 7-6(5) upset of the then-world-No. 5, officially announcing his arrival to the tennis world at large.
“That was a pivotal moment in my career,” Isner reflected on Friday in New York, amidst preparations for his farewell tournament.
The 6-foot-10 Isner would become synonymous with his serve, one of the most potent weapons the sport has ever seen. It was a shot that he relied on time and again in his now-infamous marathon matchup with Frenchman Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon in 2010, a 70-68-in-the-fifth passion play that featured a combined 216 aces and took more than 11 hours over three days to complete. (Mercifully, Wimbledon has since introduced final-set tiebreaks.)
But Isner was more than just a power-server; he was also a model of consistency. He would finish inside the Top 20 in the ATP Rankings for 10 consecutive years between 2010 and 2019, reaching a career-high No. 8 in 2018. That same year, he reached his first (and still lone) Grand Slam semifinal at Wimbledon. When Roddick headed into retirement in 2012, Isner assumed the sometimes-burdensome mantle as the top-ranked American man, a position he held for a total of eight years (2012-16, 2018-20).
“When I was a junior, then for a long time when I first started my pro career, he was the guy,” said countryman Taylor Fritz, who himself went on to become the U.S. No. 1. “He’s been on top of American tennis for a really long time. He was always super nice, welcoming to all of the new, younger guys like myself, Reilly [Opelka] and Tommy [Paul]. He was always really welcoming to us as someone we looked up to.”
Much has changed since that long-ago Portland presser. Isner has won nearly 500 tour-level matches (488-316); claimed 16 singles titles (none bigger than the ATP Masters 1000 Miami in 2018, when he downed Alexander Zverev in the final, 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-4); and topped the leaderboard in career aces (a record 14,411 at last count). He’s also since married and become a busy father of four. That last development, along with recurring injuries, led Isner to announce his pending retirement early this month.
“After 17+ years on the ATP Tour, it’s time to say goodbye to professional tennis,” he Tweeted. “This transition won’t be easy but I’m looking forward to every second of it with my amazing family. The US Open will be my final event. Time to lace ‘em up one last time.”
He can finally let go of the pressure, though it turns out he never really viewed it that way.
“I never felt like it was a burden to be the No. 1 American,” said the wild card Isner, who opens against Argentine Facundo Diaz Acosta in Flushing Meadows. “Maybe because in juniors and through college I wasn’t really spoken about. In a sense, I sort of came on tour with not much pressure on myself. There weren’t many expectations for me.
“Of course, I did take pride in being the best I could be. I always did want to be the No. 1 American,” he continued. “I’d be lying if I told you I didn’t. I never felt like there was this huge, enormous burden on me to try to get there. When I was the top American, to be quite honest with you, American men’s tennis wasn’t what it was in the ‘90s or early 2000s.”
It seems fitting that the last tournament of his career should come at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. This is where, exactly 20 years ago, Roddick secured his one and only major singles title, and he remains the last American man to do so. As in that first Davis Cup experience in Oregon, Roddick was perhaps the ultimate motivator for Isner.
“I don’t think he was the most talented guy, by any means, but he was an absolute bulldog on the court, off the court, in how he trained, how he took care of himself,” Isner said of his compatriot.
“One of the hardest workers I think this sport has ever seen. When I was in high school seeing him win the US Open, then on tour with him, seeing how hard he worked, it definitely showed me that I had a long way to go just to try to match him because he was in the Top 10 forever, Top 5 for a long time, too. He just worked his ass off each and every day. Just watching that for me was very inspiring. If I wanted to be a top professional, I knew I had to at least try to do what he did.”
Dubbing a player an ‘overachiever’ can be an unpopular move. But that’s exactly how Isner sees himself.
“Oh, yeah, for sure, I think I’ve overachieved,” he said on US Open media day. “I never imagined myself having this much success for this long. Of course, there’s so many matches I wish I could have back, but I prepared in my mind as best as I possibly could for 17 years. I don’t have many regrets.”
