ATLANTA (AP) Three-time defending champion John Isner won the tallest matchup in ATP World Tour history, beating Reilly Opelka 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-2 on Saturday in the BB&T Atlanta Open semifinals.
The 6-foot-10 Isner had 22 aces against the 6-foot-11 Opelka, the 18-year-old Michigan player who recently replaced the former University of Georgia star as the tour's tallest player.
The top-seeded Isner has won 15 straight matches in the hardcourt event and reached the final for the sixth time in seven years. He has 10 tour titles, the last a year ago in Atlanta.
After winning the second set, Isner left the court for nearly nine minutes to changes clothes in the hot and humid conditions. He broke Opelka's serve - with Opelka ending the game with a double fault - to take a 3-2 lead, and broke again for a 5-2 advantage.
Opelka was playing his third tour event. He lost in the first round in the first two.
Isner will face second-seeded Nick Kyrgios of Australia, a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 winner over Japan's Yoshihito Nishioka in the afternoon semifinal.
''It was a hot and humid day,'' Kyrgios said. ''Yoshi is a great player and makes you play a lot of balls and a lot of rallies. The crowd was great today, too.''
Kyrgios had 16 aces and saved three of four break points he faced. He won in Marseille, France, in February for his lone tour title.
''I knew at the start of the week that I could get this far,'' Kyrgios said. ''It's not really surprising, but it's rewarding for sure.''
Nishioka was playing his first tour semifinal.
''I think I played very well, but he has a great serve,'' Nishioka said. ''He has a great second serve and I didn't have many chances to break. I couldn't put pressure on his first serves either.''
