NEW YORK—Rhythmic clapping resounded around the cozy confines of Court 17, bringing surround sound to the smallest stadium on site. The fourth-set tiebreak tug-of-war tightened dramatically when John Isner dug in and made one last timely pull. Isner’s booming serve saved two set points earlier in the fourth at 4-5; his daring dose of forward thinking carried him into his first career major quarterfinal.
Finding corners of the service box most men would need a step ladder to touch, the 6'9" Isner slammed 26 aces and attacked astutely on pivotal points to subdue Gilles Simon, 7-6 (2), 3-6, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (4) and join compatriot Andy Roddick as one of two American men to reach the last eight at the U.S. Open. It was the ninth straight win for the North Carolina native, who warmed up for the Open by capturing his third career title in Winston-Salem.
This was the first meeting between Isner and Simon, yet there was little feeling-out, as the 12th-seeded Frenchman broke in the opening game and served for the set at 6-5, only to see Isner blast a low backhand pass to break back. Isner, who trailed the entire set, took a 4-1 lead in the tiebreaker on the strength of an ace and a service winner. Reaching up for his toss, he cranked a biting body serve that rattled Simon’s racquet to seize the first set in 47 minutes.
The 26-year-old Simon hits flatter than his fellow Frenchmen and tried to keep the ball low to force the big man to bend, but frequent flirtations with the top of the net proved problematic. The slender Simon’s physique is reminiscent of Lleyton Hewitt on a gluten-free diet—he carries not an ounce of body fat and has long arms, giving him an expansive reach. Simon has an uncanny ability to land shots within inches of the baseline, and he used his shotmaking skill to break Isner in two of his first three service games to take the second set and level the match.
Neither man managed a break point in the third set as Isner delivered three of his 12 aces in the tiebreaker, building a two-sets-to-one lead after two hours and 28 minutes of play.
At that point, Isner had so thoroughly saturated at least seven of his yellow Nike shirts that he sent his agent out to get more; his laundry bag ballooned almost to the size of a racquet bag. Meanwhile, Simon showed no signs of physical fatigue as the pair traded breaks to start the fourth. Isner saved a break point with an ace for 2-all and employed successful serve-and-volley plays to earn another hard-fought hold at 30 for 4-all. At 4-5, Isner saved a set point by pounding an ace down the T, and wiped away another with a serve-and-volley on a second serve.
At 3-all in the tiebreaker, Isner dug out a volley that danced on his shoelaces and was stuck in no-man’s land, only to see Simon tighten up and push a routine forehand pass wide, dropping his racquet in disbelief. Isner again attacked and coaxed an error before blasting his 26th ace for match point. A bold backhand volley drew another error as Isner sealed the win in style after three hours and 37 minutes, setting up a quarterfinal clash with fourth-seeded Andy Murray that gives Isner little turnaround time to recover from today's fight.
—Richard Pagliaro