American John Isner overcame a spirited challenge from former top-ranked Lleyton Hewitt of Australia to successfully defend the Campbell’s Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport. With the victory, the American received $68,220 and also maintained the 250 ranking points her earned last year.
“It feels very good,” said Isner.
“It’s never easy coming to a tournament where in a previous year you won it. There’s a lot of pressure on you. You don’t do well, your ranking’s going to drop… I did well, I defended those points and I kept my ranking where it’s at. More importantly than that, I gained a lot of confidence from this week just as I did last year. I had a great, great summer last year. I hope to have much of the same this year,” he added.
Hewitt, a former Wimbledon champion, entered the tournament ranked 233rd in the world after battling several months of injury, including a toe surgery.
“A lot of positives have come out of this week. Grass is a tough surface to come back on after any kind of surgery, and especially foot surgery, where my movement is such a big thing, because on grass you’re in the wrong positions a lot of the time. You’ve got to have that confidence in your footwork,” Hewitt said.
