In a contest dictated by serves—Michael Llodra, a 6-3, 6-4 winner, won 93% of his first-serve points—I remember the returns most of all. They were uncommon, at least those that stayed in play. But in this guessing game/tennis match, when proper contact was made, the result was much like one of Llodra's 14 aces: An outright winner.
It was this knowledge that seemed to keep Llodra focused in spite of constant pressure from the big-serving big man, John Isner. The Frenchman was patient, a prerequisite for success. He knew what was coming most of the time, but on so many occasions Isner's serve was just too hot to handle. But Llodra remained confident in his abilities, probably because he knew he could answer Isner, serve-for-serve, when he held the ball. Llodra broke Isner once per set, and that was more than enough—he never offered his American adversary a chance to do the same.
Isner's serve may be harder to return than Llodra's, but today's match showed me that it's easier to read. Unlike Llodra, Isner doesn't fool around with deceptive spin—it's a flat strike that doesn't waver from a few pre-selected targets. Figure it out, even temporarily, and the ball will fly back with substantial pace. But that's easier said than done. Another Frenchman, Nicolas Mahut, had 70 games to crack the code in Wimbledon. The only thing that cracked, of course, was him.
—Ed McGrogan