American John Isner secured his eighth ATP Tour title on Saturday after the 14th-ranked player edged Yen-Hsun Lu of Taiwan 7-6, 7-6 in the title match of the Heineken Open 2014 in Auckland, New Zealand.
“I wish it didn’t have to be so close at the end, it gives me a lot of grey hairs!” Isner exclaimed. “But I’m so happy. To say this was unexpected, coming into the tournament, would be a huge understatement. Sometimes that’s how things work out. You come in with low expectations, the pressure’s off, and things tend to work out. That was the case this week.”
This is Isner’s second Auckland title. Interestingly, his titles in Auckland are the only two trophies he had won outside of the United States. He does have an impressive 8-9 finals record.
“I knew it was going to be a tough match,” said Isner. “I knew he was playing well. It was, obviously, extremely tight. I thought it was my best performance all week. I was very happy with how I played. Apart from all the break points missed, I was extremely happy with everything. I felt like I was hitting the ball the best I have all week and that’s a very good sign going forward.”
Lu admitted that Isner’s serve definitely contributed to his victory.
“He just served incredibly,” said Lu. “There was one period of time when I couldn’t read his serve. Even sometimes, when I guessed right, I still couldn’t really get the ball back. I started well, I managed one break point, but he’s No. 14 in the world and his serve is his main weapon. I had a great week and I’m happy with my performance. I hope I can keep it going now into next week.”
Isner will be leaving Auckland $82,500 richer and with 250 points added to his ranking. Lu received $43,450 and 150 ranking points.
The doubles title went to Marcelo Melo and Julian Knowle after the duo outlasted Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares.
