WELL PLAYED.

WELL PLAYED. The great Isner-Mahut match was played at a very high level. You couldn’t have had such a long match if that weren’t the case. If either player had lost form or made mistakes, the set would have ended quickly. The statistics show this. There were very few unforced errors and a high percentage of winners. Given this extraordinary play, I was irritated when the announcers, who were generally good, claimed that the players were not returning serve well. In fact, service returns were weak because the serves were so overpowering. The announcers acknowledged that Isner may have the best serve in the game today. Imagine the good servers of the past, and remember that Isner is six foot nine. The announcers quoted Andy Roddick to the effect that you can’t teach height. The criticisms of the return of serve reminded me of the joke that is often made about great baseball pitchers. “He’s just lucky. His whole career he’s pitched against teams that are in a slump.”