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US Open: Roger Federer v John Isner Fourth Round Predictions

By Geoff Nichols

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US Open: Roger Federer v John Isner Fourth Round Predictions

Roger Federer will take on John Isner under the lights on Monday night for a place in yet another Grand Slam quarter final. He has made serene progress so far and has not been required to come out of first gear for his first three matches in New York.

For John Isner, he is perhaps surprisingly not alone in flying the American flag in the US Open fourth round. Compatriot Donald Young also faces a Swiss opponent in Stan Wawrinka for a place in the quarter finals, although the majority of home hopes will fall on Isner.

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A few weeks ago I would have said that the giant American’s serve would command the respect of Federer at the very least, although the way the world number two has been treating similarly strong serves in North America with disdain would maybe suggest otherwise.

When making a case that a player could trouble Federer on his current form, you need to search for weapons that can hurt him consistently over five sets. That is not impossible when it comes to Isner, whose serve and one-two punch is the best in the world.

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A lot of talk has been focussed upon the easy progress Federer has made through the draw in the first week, having won nine sets out of nine without ever looking in danger. However, the same can be said of Isner, who has in fact only played eight sets, winning them all, by virtue of him opponent retiring in the third round.

He will be as fresh as possible coming into the match, which might not seem that important for a player who relies mostly on a big serve and shortening the points, but it will give him the belief that he can go deep if required. Both men are physically ready for five sets and that could well be on the cards.

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Federer will put returns back in play, more so than the majority of players on tour that Isner will face. He may even opt to run at a few first or second deliveries to disrupt the American’s rhythm. In my eyes Isner is one of the best at putting this out of his mind and stepping up to serve with his mind concentrated on execution.

His only win over Federer came on the clay in 2012 and the pair have not met since then. Both are playing better tennis now than they were then and I think comparisons with previous match ups won’t tell a great deal more, as we already know what to expect.

Federer will look to continue to dominate on serve, although his crazy run of consecutive holds is gone. He will look for a balanced game plan, aiming to make Isner play as many balls as possible. Isner, in contrast, will aim to shorten the points and swing from the hip.

In a strange way it is one of few matches were the ball is out of Federer’s hand for much of the match. Nevertheless, the stature and reputation of the world number two is often enough to wrestle the match onto his own terms and he should accomplish this enough to prevail.

Prediction: Federer in four sets

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