Rafael Nadal will look to win back-to-back hard-court Masters 1000 events when he takes the court on Sunday in Cincinnati. Standing in his way is surprising finalist John Isner.
Rafael Nadal and John Isner will be going head-to-head for the fourth time in their careers when they clash in the final of the Western & Southern Open on Sunday afternoon. They have not faced each other since 2011, when Nadal survived a first-round French Open thriller 6-4, 6-7(2), 6-7(2), 6-2, 6-4. The Spaniard also took came out on top in a pair of 2010 encounters; 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 at the Indian Wells Masters and 7-5, 6-4 on the clay courts of Madrid.
Nadal, of course, is in rare hard-court form at the moment. He is 15-0 on the surface this season, with Masters titles in Indian Wells and last week in Montreal. In fact, other than his well-documented hiccup at Wimbledon, Nadal has been on fire just about everywhere. The third-ranked Spaniard 52-3 for the year following Cincinnati scalps of Benjamin Becker, Grigor Dimitrov, Roger Federer, and Tomas Berdych.
This is a matchup between two of the hottest players on tour, as Isner is up to his usual tricks–and even exceeding them–on U.S. hard courts. After reaching a grass-court semifinal in Newport, the 22nd-ranked American took home the title from Atlanta and finished runner-up to Juan Martin Del Potro in Washington, D.C. It has only gotten better for Isner in Cincinnati. His road to the final features three Top 10 scalps (Milos Raonic, Novak Djokovic, and Del Potro) in addition to straight-set dismissals of Florian Mayer and Richard Gasquet. Isner is 32-18 for his 2013 campaign, including 28-9 in the United States and 21-2 in his last 23 matches on home soil.
“Nobody likes to play against a player who you will not have a chance to be on rhythm most of the time,” Nadal explained. “John is this kind of player. He should be fighting for the Masters, for the Top 10. With his serve, advantage is huge. He’s playing well, mentally, and making the right decisions in important moments.
“It’s the kind of match that the only thing you can try is what is in your hands. What is in your hands is serve well and play solid from the baseline and play aggressive.”
The world No. 1 had been serving extremely well this week until he double-faulted six times–all in the second set–against Berdych. If Nadal cleans that up, he should have an edge in this one. He has dropped only one set (the first to Federer) in Cincinnati, whereas Isner is coming off consecutive emotional three-setters that lasted a combined five hours and 11 minutes. The underdog can level the playing field and keep it competitive with monster serves and forehands, but capping off his remarkable run with a win over Nadal may be too much to ask.
Pick: Nadal 7-6(6), 6-3
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