BIG SERVING JOHN ISNER BEATS BERNIE TOMIC, & THE U.S. IS THROUGH TO DAVIS CUP TENNIS QUARTERS FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 2013 BY RICKY DIMON

Written by: Staff on 6th March 2016

BIG SERVING JOHN ISNER BEATS BERNIE TOMIC, & THE U.S. IS THROUGH TO DAVIS CUP TENNIS QUARTERS FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 2013 BY RICKY DIMON

epa05197101 John Isner of the United States plays Bernard Tomic of Australia in their first round tie match during day 3 of the Davis Cup at the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club in Melbourne, Australia, 06 March 2016. EPA/TRACEY NEARMY AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND OUT |

The United States picked up its first Davis Cup World Group team victory since 2013 when it finished off Australia 3-1 on Sunday afternoon at the Kooyong Club in Melbourne. Jim Courier, John Isner, and company last advanced to the Davis Cup quarterfinals three years ago after beating Brazil at home in a first-round tie.

Bernard Tomic of Australia plays John Isner of the United States in their first round tie match during day 3 of the Davis Cup at the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club in Melbourne, Australia, 06 March 2016. EPA/TRACEY NEARMY

Although the Americans were not initially favorite to win this one, the week got off to an inauspicious start for the Aussies and never got much better. Bernard Tomic and Nick Kyrgios were coming off long weeks in Acapulco and Dubai, respectively. Kyrgios ended up being unable to play–which turned into a considerable controversy–due to either injury and/or illness. That forced captain Lleyton Hewitt to put himself on the four-man roster and insert Sam Groth into the singles lineup to replace Kyrgios.

After the visitors took a 2-1 lead thanks to a five-set doubles victory by Bob and Mike Bryan on Saturday, Tomic faced a must-win situation against Isner. The 23-year-old battled hard, but he fell victim to a historic serving performance–even by Isner standards. Isner crushed 49 aces in just four sets and did not double-fault a single time en route to a 6-4, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6(4) victory. The 6’10” American put in 76 percent of his first serves and at one point clocked one that registered at 157 MPH on the radar gun.

The 157 MPH serve is a record at the main level in tennis history (ATP, Grand Slams, Davis Cup, and Olympics; excluding Challengers and Futures).

“It’s breathtaking to watch him serve the way he did,” Courier said of Isner. “You know, Bernie I think is one of great return cover players in tennis. I think he gets so many balls back; he’s long, and for John to serve the amount of aces that he did today and to serve the quality high percentage that he did all day long in a match [in which] he obviously was feeling the pressure…. It’s Davis Cup last day–you’re going to feel it. He stepped up big for us. He’s done it for us in Davis Cup before and he did again today.”

“I was fighting, (but) he was serving ridiculous,” assessed Tomic, who dealt with an apparent wrist injury starting in the second set. “Not much you can do, just try guess the right side. I had so much pain in my wrist but I kept thinking about Davis Cup. No pain would stop me playing today. But I couldn’t really serve fast. It’s a shame.”

“In the end, Bernard was a little unlucky,” Hewitt added. “He was holding his serve easier in the fourth set and had a mini-break in the tiebreaker as well. But John stepped up.”