John Isner has reached the third round at Roland Garros for the third time in his career thanks to a four-set victory over Mikhail Kukushkin this evening.
In the first set both men traded five holds of serve before Kukushkin appeared to make the crucial breakthrough and go in front 6-5.
However, American Isner responded by breaking straight back to love in the next, forcing a tie-break.
It would be Kazakhstan's Kukushkin who won through, clinching his second set point to claim the breaker 8-6.
A tie-break would again be needed in the second set after no breaks of serve, with this time Isner needing just one mini-break to take the set.
Set three would be the only one without a tie-break as Isner crucially broke when 4-3 ahead before serving out the set 6-3 to take a 2-1 lead.
In the fourth neither man wobbled on serve, and in the breaker it was Isner who stayed cool on his first match point to reach the last 32.
He has never got past the third round at the French Open and will have to beat 17th seed Tommy Robredo if he is to do so this year.
Pascal Lemesre
