Isner Win Sets Up Round of 16 Clash With Federer
American John Isner advanced to the fourth round of the U.S. Open Saturday after his opponent Jiri Vesely was forced to retire as Isner held a 6-3, 6-4 lead. Vesely repeatedly received treatment on his neck from the training staff and could no longer continue after Isner closed out the second set 6-4.
“I'm playing well. I definitely conserved a lot of energy, as well,” said Isner. “A lot of times I play long matches, but I have been on and off the court pretty quickly my first three matches. That bodes well for me.”
Up next for Isner is the second-seeded Roger Federer, a 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 winner Saturday in just over 90 minutes against the 29th-seeded German Phillip Kohlschreiber.
Federer and Isner have met five times, with Federer taking four out of five of those matches. The last meeting was three years ago at the Summer Olympics in London.
Isner and Federer met in Flushing Meadows eight years ago, a 6-7(4), 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 win by Federer.
“That was eight years ago now. Absolutely no pressure on me that day, and I honestly probably didn't believe I could beat him, either,” Said Isner of their encounter at the 2007 Open. “I was happy to be on that court. I was fresh out of college and no one knew anything about me. He certainly didn't. I won one set, which was incredible. Didn't win much after that.”
“I expect the crowd to be on his side,” said Federer of Isner. “If they are on my side, I am clearly very happy and will appreciate that … that goes also into my preparation, to be quite honest. But I love playing here. People know that. We will see how it's going to be.”
