Isner Takes Newport Title
John Isner’s comeback from an ankle injury that kept him out of tennis for several months this year is gathering steam as Isner beat Kazakh Alexander Bublik 7-6 6-3 to win his 4thNewport title.
Isner picked up an injury playing against Roger Federer in the final of the Miami Master’s earlier this year and did not play again until Wimbledon, where he lost in Round 2 to Mikhail Kukushkin. However, Isner, who broke the top 10 for the first time last year, is finding the form that saw him qualify for the ATP World Tour Finals last year, winning 4 straight matches en route to victory in Newport.
“My very first ATP Tour event was here in 2007 and I didn’t enjoy the courts that much back then because I didn’t know how to play on them,” said Isner. “To say that I’ve won this event four times isn’t something I thought would be possible.”
Isner moves 1 place back up the ATP rankings to 14 in the world and will be looking to claim back to back titles when he plays in Atlanta this week. Despite losing in the final, Bublik has continued his steady rise up the rankings, moving 12 places up the rankings to a career high rank of 71.
Written by Emre Saridogan