Isner wins second consecutive Winston-Salem title

John Isner won his second straight Winston-Salem title after a tense third-set tiebreaker to beat Tomas Berdych 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (11-9). Isner served 22 aces, but needed to overcome his own mistakes for his second win this season and fifth career title in the final hard-court tournament ahead of US Open. “There were certainly some tense times all throughout the match,” said Isner, who also won at Newport, R.I., last month. “At times, it wasn’t the prettiest tennis, but I was able to gut it out. I’m very, very proud of that.” Seventh-ranked Berdych, playing in his third final this season, broke Isner’s serve in winning the first set, and had three mini-breaks in the tiebreaker, the last giving him match point at 6-5. But Isner broke Berdych on the next point to tie the score, and later went on to win the last three points. On match point, Isner had to chase down a hard forehand and backhand from Berdych, putting both returns on the line. Isner then ripped his own hard forehand down the line to win the tiebreaker and the match.