It was not the highest-quality match of the day, but the biggest story is that Novak Djokovic’s bid to win that elusive Cincinnati crown will have to wait another year. He lost to Tommy Robredo in straight sets today, and it was not the best of performances from the world No. 1. Djokovic could not find any real rhythm on court, and it showed, especially when his opponent’s shots were really clicking.

Robredo was strong off both wings today and never allowed Djokovic to play his way into form. He opened up break-point chances in four different service games but was putting pressure on the Djokovic serve throughout the match. Djokovic was understandably upset with his performance and summed it up pretty well, saying, “Just lost the match. That's all. It was bad.” 

Djokovic has had a disappointing North American hard-court season so far, losing in the third round both here and in Toronto last week. More than just that, though, Djokovic has not played well in any of his four matches at either tournament. He admitted as much, saying that “Just many, many, many things are not clicking these two weeks on hard courts. It's unfortunate, but it's more than obvious I'm not playing even close to what I'm supposed to play.”

Tommy Robredo was ecstatic with his win, even though he acknowledged that Djokovic didn’t play his best. Robredo knew that he needed to be at his absolute peak to win. His thoughts on the match could be summed up in his opening remarks, where he said, “Obviously Novak didn't play his best match, but if I wanted to beat him I had to be there. I think that I did a great job. I’m very happy.”

Djokovic is looking ahead to the US Open, where he hopes to be able to reverse his recent fortunes. Djokovic has reached the quarterfinals or later of every major since Roland Garros in 2009, which is a testament to his ability to pull his way through matches that he should win, even if he is not at his absolute best on some of those days. If these past two weeks are any indication, he may need to draw on that ability again until he finds his form in New York.

Earlier, in by far the best match of the day, Andy Murray and John Isner played an instant classic in their third-round match in Cincinnati. The match featured only one break of serve from eight chances, but the whole match was a tight affair filled with high-quality tennis. Grandstand Court was packed above capacity from start to finish, something that both players appreciated. And, even though the crowd was very pro-Isner, Murray is well-liked in Cincinnati, and the fans appreciated his high level of play as well.

The first set featured no break points but plenty of extended rallies, the vast majority of which went to Murray. Isner did well to stay in many of them, but he isn’t quite on the same level as Murray from the baseline. Still, he took a few big points when it counted in the tiebreak and won the first set. Isner also set the tone early by attacking every Murray second serve. Numerous Murray second-serves came right back at him as clean winners.

However, Murray did an excellent job of reading Isner’s serve towards the end of the first set and the beginning of the second, when he forced Isner to play a lot of uncomfortable extra shots. Isner acknowledged after the match that Murray “was scrambling and getting so many balls back.” This led to Murray getting a break to open the second set, and five holds later the match headed the distance.

The third set was a tense affair. Plenty of games started at 0-15 or 15-15, but there were no actual break chances until Murray was serving to stay in the match at 5-6. On match point, Isner got his racket on a volley on a well-played approach, but it hit the top of the net and couldn’t make it over. Isner stressed that he has no regrets and that he played the point the right way.

“I had a volley, and I just missed it,” he reflected. “It’s a volley I feel like I make more times than not.” The third-set tiebreak did not live up to the rest of the match, unfortunately, as Murray got a mini-break early and kept the lead before winning the final two points on Isner’s serve.