US second seed John Isner outlasted Spanish third seed Feliciano Lopez 6-7 (5/7), 7-6 (7/4), 6-3 on Saturday to reach the final of the $442,500 ATP US Men’s Clay Court Championship. As a result, the power-serving American ensured he will rise from 10th to ninth in the ATP rankings on Monday, passing Mardy Fish to become the top-rated US player in the world. “That has been one of my goals for a long, long time,” Isner said. “I’m so happy to accomplish it.” Isner, who sparked a US semi-final Davis Cup triumph on French clay to book a semi-final date with Spain in September, will seek his fourth career title in Sunday’s final against Argentina’s fourth-seeded Juan Monaco, who beat US qualifier Michael Russell 5-7, 6-1, 6-4 in the other semi-final.
