No. 9 John Isner, +8 The American has returned to a career-high No. 9 in the ATP Rankings, almost six years since he first attained the position (16 April 2012). The 32-year-old captured the biggest title of his career at the Miami Open presented by Itau by beating then No. 5-ranked Alexander Zverev 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-4 in the final for his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 crown (now 13-12 in finals). Isner also knocked out No. 3 Marin Cilic in the third round and No. 6-ranked Juan Martin del Potro in the semi-finals. Read & Watch Final Highlights View Latest ATP Rankings No. 12 Pablo Carreno Busta, +7 The Spaniard jumped seven places to No. 12, two spots off...
Rafael Nadal has today returned to No. 1 in the ATP Rankings, beginning his fifth stint at the pinnacle of men’s professional tennis, nine-and-a-half years after he first attained the top spot on 18 August 2008. The icon of the game, who begins his 168th week at No. 1, replaces Switzerland’s Roger Federer, who had held the top ranking since 19 February to extend his record to 308 weeks overall. The 31-year-old Nadal, who has been omnipresent in the Top 10 since 25 April 2005, is now two weeks shy of sixth-placed John McEnroe’s mark in top spot (170). Nadal first ascended to the top spot at the age of 22 and has spent four previous stints at No. 1...
Our understanding of forehands and backhands has just added another layer - ironically from one of the greatest servers our sport has ever seen. John Isner defeated Alexander Zverev 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-4 to win the Miami Open presented by Itau on Sunday, with an analysis of his forehands and backhands shedding new light on what other factors heavily contribute to their overall performance. The following five areas break down Isner’s forehand and backhand proficiency with a new lens. The analysis does not include returns, volleys or overheads, but does include baseline groundstrokes and approaching the net. 1. The Serve Protects The Backhand On the surface, there is nothing special about uncovering that Isner hit 24 backhands in the opening set....
John Isner has had an adventurous couple of weeks to say the least. Arriving at Crandon Park, the 32-year-old American had won two tour-level matches all year (2-6). And in his opener at the Miami Open presented by Itau against Jiri Vesely, he lost the second set and appeared he could possibly suffer another early exit. Yet, after his second win against a Top 5 opponent in this tournament alone (now 10 in his career) on Sunday, Isner leaves Key Biscayne as the oldest first-time ATP World Tour Masters 1000 champion in history. “I never thought I would be in this moment considering how I was playing coming into this event,” Isner said. In fact, at two of his previous...