Recap of the fiercest battles of 2012: Isner vs. Djokovic – BNP Paribas Open 2012
Ranked 14th in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, John Isner gave a three-set shocker to the Serbian number one, Novak Djokovic, in the semi-finals of the BNP Paribas Open held on the hard courts of Indian
Wells, United States. Isner capitalized 7-6(7), 3-6, 7-6(5) win against the top seeded rival.
The American contender is an emerging tennis ace and won his first ever ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event. This surely cracked the thick layer of ice and the victory against the reigning world number one, surely boosted his confidence
to a greater degree. He is the only ray of hope after Mardy Fish for the American tennis fans and will indisputably reach the world Top-10 rankings with just a little more hard work and effort.
In a post match interview Isner said, “The first set was really key because he came out and got on top of me early. At 5-4, I got back on serve; that gave me a lot of momentum. And winning that first set tie-breaker, I knew that
I was firmly in the match. At that point I believed I could win the match.”
The Serb told the media, “With that serve and with that forehand he's got the ability to be a Top 10 player. He had that already a couple years back. I think it all came together for him now, and he's deservedly in the Top 10
now.”
At the start, the 25-year-old, displayed a great grip on the match and cashed on his rival’s serve early. Later Isner started to build momentum with his powerful serve and forced the Serb to shift to a defensive mode. He battled
to level down his competitor’s serves but as the match continued, he was unable to register more break points.
The right-hander American thundered across several high-paced aces in the seventh game of the third set and terminated the set with a tie-breaker. Despite of Djokovic’s attempts, Isner nudged forward gallantly and clinched his
victory after a breath taking encounter for two hours and 45 minutes.
The 27-year-old, Isner, managed to take away 74 percent initial serve precision with 20 aces and did not even commit a single double fault. He bagged away 60 of 83 first and 15 of 29 second delivery points in retaliation. On the
other hand, the higher handed professional attained 65 percent initial serve with eight aces and two double faults. Djokovic attained 56 of 72 points.
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