INDIAN WELLS, Calif. — John Isner fired 20 aces, including one at 135 mph on his fourth match point Saturday, to beat top-ranked Novak Djokovic 7-6 (7), 3-6, 7-6 (5) in the BNP Paribas Open semifinals.
Isner will meet third-ranked Roger Federer, who defeated No. 2 Rafael Nadal 6-3, 6-4, in today’s final, with Isner trying to become the first American winner of the tournament since Andre Agassi in 2001.
Victoria Azarenka and Maria Sharapova will meet for the women’s title today.
Isner’s victory guaranteed he will break into the top 10 for the first time in next week’s ATP Tour rankings at No. 10. A victory in the final would move the American to No. 8, passing countryman Mardy Fish, who is currently in that spot.
Isner is the first American to beat a world No. 1 since James Blake defeated Federer in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He reached his first ATP Masters 1000 series final after 25 tries.
“It’s something that you don’t experience every day,” Isner said. “I was just trying to take it all in.”
Isner’s 144-mph serve forced Djokovic into a netted return that set up Isner’s second match point. Even Djokovic caught himself looking at the scoreboard to see how fast Isner’s serves were.
“Sometimes just to admire, because I will never get there,” he said, laughing.
