Isner volleyed into the net to end the match and what he had announced would be his last singles tournament. He was defeated 3-6, 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-4, 7-6(7) in the second round of the US Open by fellow American Michael Mmoh.
“It’s hard. I’d like to think I worked as hard as I could,” Isner said, barely containing his emotions as the crowd cheered.
Aged 38, Isner took advantage of a pass from the organizers to participate in the main draw of the tournament. He hit 48 aces and won 86% of the points contested on his first serve. He also committed 63 unforced errors.
Isner reached a career-high No. 8 in the world in 2018, shortly after he made the semi-finals at Wimbledon. He won 16 singles titles and hit over 14,000 aces, setting the ATP record. He notably hit 113 in the longest match in tennis history, a first round duel at Wimbledon against Nicolas Mahut in 2010 that lasted 11 hours 5 minutes and ended 70-68 in the fifth set.
In the next round, Mmoh will face Jack Draper, who caused an upset by beating Hubert Hurkacz 6-2, 6-4, 7-5. Draper, a 21-year-old Briton, returned to action in August after a two-month absence with a shoulder injury.
Against Hurkacz, he prevailed with good serves and good downfield play. For his part, the Pole seemed to lack energy and requested a doctor’s visit during the third set.
Hurkacz, seeded 17, was hoping for a good tournament after reaching the semi-finals in Cincinnati.
In the ladies, second seed Aryna Sabalenka easily beat Britain’s Jodie Burrage 6-2, 6-3 in just over an hour of play. In the third round, she will face France’s Clara Burel, who defeated Czech Karolina Pliskova 6-4, 6-2.
For her part, American Madison Keys, No. 17, also reached the third round thanks to an early victory of 6-1, 6-2 against Belgian Yanina Wickmayer.
Elsewhere, Jannik Sinner reached the third round of the US Open with a 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 win over fellow Italian Lorenzo Sonego.
Sinner, seeded sixth, improved his career record against his compatriots to 10-0. He will be hoping for a long run in New York, having reached the semi-finals at Wimbledon earlier this summer and the quarter-finals at the US Open last year, losing in five sets to Carlos Alcarez after had a match point.
“I think my game continues to improve a bit, to develop,” said Sinner, who won 80% of the points contested on his first serve. Physically, I feel fine. We’ll see!”
Sinner, 22, also won 22 of 25 points when he came to the net.
12th seeded Alexander Zverev beat fellow German Daniel Altmaier 7-6(1), 3-6, 6-4, 6-3. In the next round, he will face Grigor Dimitrov, No. 19, who defeated Andy Murray 6-3, 6-4, 6-1.
Murray committed 45 unforced errors in the loss.
In the evening at the Arthur-Ashe stadium, Alcaraz had an appointment with the South African Lloyd Harris, quarter-finalist in 2021 in New York. Then, American Jessica Pegula, No. 3, faced Patricia Maria Tig.
2023-08-31 20:35:19
#Isners #career #ends #fiveset #loss #York
