The 21st century
United States · born Greensboro, North Carolina, 1985 · right-handed · four times Newport champion and Wimbledon semi-finalist 2018
All playersBack to the rankings
4
Newport singles titles: 2011, 2012, 2017, 2019
11 h 5 min
His 2010 Wimbledon match against Nicolas Mahut, the longest on record
113
Aces in that match
SF
Best Wimbledon result, 2018
16
ATP singles titles
John Isner was born in Greensboro, North Carolina, in 1985. At 208 cm he built his game on one of the biggest serves the sport has seen. He played four years at the University of Georgia before turning professional in 2007, and that summer reached the Washington final as a late wildcard.
He won 16 ATP singles titles, including the Miami Masters in 2018, and reached No. 8 in July 2018 after his Wimbledon semi-final. He served 14,470 aces in tour-level matches by ATP count, the record; he passed Ivo Karlović's 13,728 at Wimbledon in 2022. He also won eight doubles titles. He retired after the 2023 US Open, where he lost his last singles match to Michael Mmoh in a fifth-set tiebreak.
| Newport finals | 2011: beat Olivier Rochus 6-3, 7-6(6) with 22 aces, the first top seed to win the event since 1976. 2012: beat Lleyton Hewitt 7-6(1), 6-4. 2017: beat Matthew Ebden 6-3, 7-6(4). 2019: beat Alexander Bublik 7-6(2), 6-3 |
|---|---|
| Wimbledon 2010 | Beat Nicolas Mahut 6-4, 3-6, 6-7(7), 7-6(3), 70-68 on No. 18 Court over three days: 183 games, 11 hours 5 minutes, a fifth set of 8 hours 10 minutes, 113 aces to Mahut's 103. Isner won on his fifth match point |
| Wimbledon 2018 | Reached his only major semi-final, lost to Kevin Anderson 7-6(6), 6-7(5), 6-7(9), 6-4, 26-24 in 6 hours 36 minutes. From 2019 Wimbledon introduced a tiebreak at 12-12 in the final set |
| Wimbledon 2011 | Drawn against Mahut again in the first round; won in straight sets, nine hours quicker |
| Newport, Rhode Island | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Men's doubles Hall of Fame Open | with Mardy Fish |
| 2011 | Men's singles Hall of Fame Open | |
| 2012 | Men's singles Hall of Fame Open | |
| 2017 | Men's singles Hall of Fame Open | |
| 2019 | Men's singles Hall of Fame Open | |
Leading grass titles only: the grass majors, tour-level grass events since 1968 and the leading grass championships before 1968. †single source; ‡ sources disagree. Roll of champions
"To say that I've won this event four times isn't something I thought would be possible."
The person behind the player.
Wimbledon 2010 · No. 18 Court
The match ran over three days, from Tuesday to Thursday, and the fifth set alone, won 70-68, lasted longer than any previous complete match. Between them the two men held serve 168 times in a row.
Source: Wimbledon Compendium 2025Wimbledon 2011
As Isner and Mahut were about to unveil a courtside plaque marking their 2010 match, the draw was published and paired them again in the first round. This time Isner won in straight sets, in 149 fewer games.
Source: Wimbledon Compendium 2025Newport, July 2011
He took a late wildcard into Newport, missing his brother's wedding to play, and became the first top seed to win the event since it began in 1976, ending what was known as the Casino Curse. "It was perfect serving conditions for me, this court, this tournament," he said.
Source: TennisheadWimbledon 2022
After beating Andy Murray he predicted he would need six aces to pass Ivo Karlović's record over five sets against Jannik Sinner. He hit the 13,729th of his career in his second service game. "It's actually really cool. It's something I'm really proud of," he said.
Source: USTAUS Open 2023
His last singles match ended, fittingly, in a fifth-set tiebreak, against Michael Mmoh; he served 48 aces. He had played 836 tiebreaks on the tour and won 504 of them. Andy Murray said: "I believe he has the best serve in the history of the game."
Source: Tennis MajorsFree membership: player news, the grass court Atlas, the rankings and the grass season calendar.
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