PARIS — The “Marathon Man” was at it again yesterday, but this time John Isner was on the wrong end of a 5 1/2 -hour struggle at the French Open.
The 10th-seeded American, who outlasted Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon in 2010 in an epic 70-68 fifth set, was bounced from Roland Garros in the second round 6-7 (7-2), 6-4, 6-4, 3-6 18-16 by Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu.
This one goes in the books as the second-longest match, by time, in French Open history.
“I just didn’t get it done. I felt like I got caught in patterns that weren’t ideal for me,” said a somber Isner, whose exit means there are no U.S. men in the third round for the first time since 2007. “I wasn’t going for my shots at certain points in the match, and that comes from a little bit of a lack of confidence.”
If the 6-foot-9 Isner, who led Georgia to an NCAA title, is going to become more than a novelty act, he needs to win encounters like yesterday’s, and not because of the duration but because it was a first-week Grand Slam match against a player ranked 261st who got into the field thanks to a wild-card invitation.
“I dug deep,” said Mathieu, who hadn’t played in a major tournament since the 2010 U.S. Open because of a left knee injury that forced him off tour all of last year. “I was away from the courts for quite a while, and I came back to live moments like this.”
Earlier, No. 4 Andy Murray overcame back pain and rallied for a 1-6, 6-4, 6-1, 6-2 victory over Jarkko Nieminen of Finland to reach the third round.
For the better part of an hour, Murray the three-time major finalist looked downright miserable. He grimaced. He clutched at the small of his back. He considered quitting.
“Just kind of gritting my teeth,” Murray said, “and [trying] to find a way of turning the match around, because I was a few points, probably, from stopping.”
Defending champion Rafael Nadal also made it to the third round, defeating Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan 6-2, 6-2, 6-0 and improving his record at Roland Garros to 47-1. The second-seeded Spaniard has won the French Open six times, and one more will break the record he shares with Bjorn Borg.
No. 5 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France and No. 6 David Ferrer of Spain also advanced, while Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova reached the third round by beating Urszula Radwanska of Poland 6-1, 6-3.
Defending champion Li Na easily advanced by beating Stephanie Foretz Gacon of France 6-0, 6-2.
Caroline Wozniacki also made it through. The ninth-seeded Dane beat Jarmila Gajdosova of Australia 6-1, 6-4.
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John Isner, Roland Garros, Roland Garros, Andy Murray, French Open, Nicolas Mahut, Wimbledon
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