John Isner lumbered toward the net and did not get to see his match-ending forehand winner down the line as he fell forward onto the extremely hot grass court.
The top seed on Sunday used his blistering serve and a good passing shot after his opponent’s unconventional serve on match point to overcome the scorching conditions and win the title for the fourth time in Newport, beating seventh seed Alexander Bublik 7-6 (7/2), 6-3 at the Hall of Fame Open.
“I had a feeling he was going to go to the underarm serve and I was ready for it,” Isner said, breaking into a smile. “I actually didn’t see the ball land in because my face was on the ground. I had a feeling I hit it pretty well and then I heard the crowd start cheering.”
Facing a creative opponent who mixed in numerous underhanded serves with cuts and slices throughout the match, the 34-year-old American captured his 15th ATP Tour title. He also won at Newport in 2017, 2012 and 2011, making him the only four-time winner of the event.
“He’s an interesting guy for sure and has his own way of playing tennis,” Isner said. “I said he’s a bit quirky, but mean that in a good way.”
Kazakh 22-year-old Bublik was playing in his first ATP Tour final.
The match started in blazing sunshine with a temperature of 29°C and a feel-like temperature of 35°C. It lasted 1 hour, 15 minutes.
“Two sets in that stuff is still very difficult,” said Isner, who entered the week ranked 15th in the world. “I’m still glad it didn’t go three.”
Bublik faked an overhead smash at the net and hit a soft drop-shot winner that closed the second set’s seventh game. It had both players laughing as they walked to their chairs for the changeover.
“That was funny,” Bublik said. “I was like: ‘I’m not going to do anything, just a fake overhead.’ That was funny.”
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