The retirement of John Isner united all tennis professionals as they congratulated him on his journey. Players, including Coco Gauff, Jack Sock, Hubert Hurkacz, and others, expressed their emotions as the tallest professional will play his last match in the US Open. Isner is one of the rare players to beat the ‘Big 3,’ and Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka, at least once.
The American had enjoyed an incredible and historical journey on the court that will always be remembered. His compatriot, Andy Roddick, shares a heartwarming note with the champion as he reminds Isner of something that can never be felt.
Andy Roddick prepares himself to see his compatriot on the other side
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As Isner will also retire on the home turf, Roddick empathized with him and expressed his love for the former 8th seed. But there is one moment the 40-year-old asked his junior of 2 years to cherish, which would probably be his last.
Following the ATP champion’s retirement tweet, Roddick tagged his compatriot and wrote, “Love ya big guy. Give ’em hell next week. Don’t forget to take all of the looks around. Congrats on a great run. See you on the other side.” As the US Open champion rightly pointed out, Isner won’t get a chance to experience the crowd and the game after he hangs his racket.
https://twitter.com/andyroddick/status/1694790097814556976?s=20
Roddick had been there, so he knew how playing his career’s last match felt. So he wanted the six-time Atlanta Open champion to savor every moment on the court. Isner, who holds a record that will never likely be broken, will play his next match against a young Argentian.
John Isner, the tallest man with the longest record
The 2010 Wimbledon Championships witnessed the longest match ever in tennis history. The first round of Isner extracted every bit of energy out of him as the game continued for 11 hours and 5 minutes. All went well till the fourth set, but then came the fifth set, which lasted more than 8 hours.
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The 3-day match finally ended with Isner winning the set 70-68 and, therefore, the longest match, too, against Nicolas Mahut. Following that, the All England Club set the tie-break rule of 12-12. So, though Isner did not have a Slam, he secured the win in the longest tennis match.
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The 6’10” champion’s serve is regarded as the most difficult to return, and his opponents could not even dare to think of securing a break point against him. The American will play his first-round match against Facundo Diaz Acosta for the first time. How far do you believe Isner can make it in the US Open? Let us know in the comments.
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