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Miami Open: Revived Isner Praises Crowd Support
24 Comments · Posted by Scoop Malinowski in Scoop
By Scoop Malinowski
John Isner has suffered a subpar year, winning just two singles matches before Miami. Winning Indian Wells doubles last week with Jack Sock and some inspiring crowd support this week has helped uplift Isner to beat Jiri Vesely in three sets and Mikhail Youzhny in two tonight.
Sparked by shouts by fans of Cmon Isner, Let’s go Bulldog, Isner seemed to respond with a higher level of play to get his season back on track.
After beating Youzhny before a large crowd on grandstand, Isner discussed the advantages of positive support…
Question: How important is crowd support for you? You got far more vocal support here this week (than in Indian Wells vs Monfils) and it seemed to help especially vs Vesely. Sometimes in America you have not always got the support expected (Monfils losses last week and at US Open to Monfils). How important is crowd support to you?
John Isner: I think I get good crowd support. I appreciate it. The crowd is the reason we’re out here. Because these people watching us are paying for tickets. They can do whatever the heck they want to do…cheer me, cheer against me. That’s their right. But I would certainly want them to cheer for me. But that’s what makes this game so cool. There’s a lot of great characters and personalities on the Tour.
Q: Is there one particular match that comes to mind where the positive crowd support made a big difference for you?
JI: So many. The first thing that comes to mind is playing college at the University of Georgia and my senior year we won the NCAAs and having that crowd behind us was such a huge boon to us. But yeah of course I’ve played a lot of matches in big stadiums where the crowd was, in large part, behind me. It helped me so much. Gives you so much adrenaline. And when you have adrenaline coursing through your veins, anything is possible.
Isner will meet 2 seed Marin Cilic in the round of 16.
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dan markowitz · March 25, 2018 at 8:33 pm
He’s beaten Youzhny and Veselfy. While I like Izzie, let’s not throw him a parade yet.
Chazz · March 25, 2018 at 8:39 pm
Federer losing kind of blew this thing wide open. It would be cool to see someone like Isner or Kokkinakis come out of nowhere to win it. I am more and more perplexed by Dimitrov. I know he is a career underachiever based on his talent, but wow. He should never lose to Chardy in straight sets.
scoopmalinowski · March 25, 2018 at 8:44 pm
Dimitrov did his big warm up, he was ready. Maybe those Melbourne losses to Edmund and Nadal last yr crushed his belief. He has his oppty but failed.
scoopmalinowski · March 25, 2018 at 8:50 pm
Isner said today winning those five doubles matches with Sock in IW were very helpful. Vesely was a tight tense affair and he looked shaky but the crowd support from Harry Cicma helped. He really needed that win and got it and made today easier. Youzhny was up 3-1 h2h on Isner before today. I smell an Isner run soon but Cilic will be tough. Cilic looked strong today subduing a rejuvenated Pospisil.
Duke Carnoustie · March 25, 2018 at 11:52 pm
Dan is right. Beating Youzhny isn’t some great feat. Get past Cilic and I will believe. Those two have played some great matches in the past.
That’s not the only big Croatia-US showdown. I believe its time for Sock to prove he can beat Coric in a big spot after the kid took him out in Davis Cup. Sock surely wants this one.
Can you believe Kyrgios and Fognini have never played? That’s must-see TV.
I like Venus over Konta, Mugu to crush Sloane and Kvitova to make it four straight in the H2H over Penko.
Duke Carnoustie · March 25, 2018 at 11:57 pm
Chazz is right. Dimitrov is a bigger underachiever than Berdych for sure.
You know my solution, time to dump the gf.
Duke Carnoustie · March 26, 2018 at 12:21 am
Check out qualifying for San Luis Potosi, who are these guys? Haven’t heard of one player. I think Dan and Scoop could get a set off these guys
http://www.protennislive.com/posting/2018/213/qs.pdf
Top seed in the main draw? Paulo Lorenzi
Duke Carnoustie · March 26, 2018 at 1:25 am
Did anyone read of Fed’s trip to Chicago to promote Laver Cup on Monday? He loses to DelPo, sleeps for five hours then jets to Chicago for two days and then headed to Key Biscayne.
Why wouldn’t he have waited until after Key Biscayne to go to Chicago? it’s unnecessary travel before a big event like Miami and he looked worn down vs. Kokk. Now his next match will be June 11 in Stuttgart.
catherine · March 26, 2018 at 3:31 am
Duke – I would reverse all your predictions 🙂
Dimitrov – who is the gf now ? Used to be Lewis Hamilton’s ex but that was just a few minutes ago…
catherine · March 26, 2018 at 3:44 am
I wouldn’t even go for Kerber over Wang. Wang has beaten Riske, Suarez Navorro and Vondrosouva in Miami.
But I like Angie’s black outfit when she comes on court. Worth a few games. Even the ribbon on her plait is black. Adidas has killed Nike design wise this year..
Overheard – Simona: ‘please can I change my mind ? Pink isn’t my colour.’
Petra needs Penko to lose count of her challenges 🙂
scoopmalinowski · March 26, 2018 at 8:20 am
Duke, also Santoro tweeted that Mirka was snoring the night before Chicago trip so Fed got no sleep.
scoopmalinowski · March 26, 2018 at 8:21 am
Isner said he didnt serve very well vs Youzhny which was a good sign in a sense bc he won without relying too much on his primary weapon.
Hartt · March 26, 2018 at 9:34 am
Isner has complained in the past about American fans cheering for his opponent (in particular that USO match against Monfils), so I don’t really believe him when he says he thinks the crowd has the right to either support him or not. He seems to think he is owed the crowd support purely because he is an American.
Of course the other side of the equation is playing when the crowd is supporting your opponent in a big way. Raonic faced that last night in his match against Schwartzman, with the crowd loudly and enthusiastically behind the South American player. There were a few shouts for Milos, but nothing in comparison to Diego’s support. Milos seemed able to block it out, there weren’t any signs that it affected his play.
catherine · March 26, 2018 at 10:04 am
I think if a player is wrapped in the heat of the battle they can block out distraction from a partisan crowd, but it can’t be easy and maybe is something only experience can teach.
Remember Jana Novotna, the day after she won W’don, taking an ad in papers the next day thanking the crowd ‘for making me feel British’ ? Obviously that crowd support helped her to win and probably didn’t help her opponent. On the other hand BJK won W’don several times without noticeable crowd support but I think she made that work her favour – she was just not going to let it distract her from getting what she wanted.
Duke Carnoustie · March 26, 2018 at 11:56 am
The crowd is under no obligation to root for anyone – except Fed!
scoopmalinowski · March 26, 2018 at 12:32 pm
Hartt, Isner accepts fans can cheer for or against him. He is not bitter about it all. He may have griped about it in the past but hes mature and wise enough to understand why it happens sometimes against Monfils.
scoopmalinowski · March 26, 2018 at 12:35 pm
I think its awful that usa fans have cheered Monf over him twice in usa. But thats the injustice of life. Hsieh told me sometimes when it gets so loud on court in a stadium she actually hears nothing.
catherine · March 26, 2018 at 1:47 pm
Angie is sufering v Wang – lost tiebreak and left the court for a while. Not looking well. Muguruza losing 1st set Stephens.
scoopmalinowski · March 26, 2018 at 2:31 pm
I was there. Wang left court also to change outfit. Wang went up 6-0 in that breaker, all short pts too. Wang is playing well. She attacks net. In press room a photog commented on Kerber losing, actually said “womens tennis is more interesting than mens right now.”
catherine · March 26, 2018 at 2:55 pm
Muguruza loses. Angie wins 2nd but winner of this will lose to Stephens. Both looking tired, no wonder.
catherine · March 26, 2018 at 2:58 pm
You wonder when/if Garbine will ever win another tornament.
catherine · March 26, 2018 at 3:27 pm
Angie wins but Wang played very well and came to the net often in the early parts of the match where she usually won the point.
Angie a bit patchy – good fight though.
scoopmalinowski · March 26, 2018 at 3:32 pm
Kerber was too tough. She wanted it more she had the greater will. Wang was maybe the better player today but Kerber showed her heart of a champion. Excellent epic battle in brutal heat. Wang is one of the best volleyers in the business.
catherine · March 26, 2018 at 3:34 pm
Sometimes Angie played like 2017 and sometimes like the best of 2018. So I hope she can go on remembering which year she’s in and how good she can be.