2011 US Open: Does John Isner Have What It Takes to Make a Deep Run in New York?

Currently ranked at number 28 in the world, John Isner has never been past the fourth round in a grand slam. And now, with the US Open commencing in less than a week, he's going to do his best to try and change that.

Isner stands at 6'9", and has arguably the best serve in tennis. He did get to the fourth round at Flushing Meadows in 2009, as he crushed Victor Hanescu and Marcel Ilhan, and edged Andy Roddick, only to be dismissed by Fernando Verdasco in four sets.

A few years ago, the American giant turned some heads, and was expected to do well in the future, given his talent.

Though Isner did crack into the top twenty once in 2010, he got only as high as 18, one that he will look to improve on. Many believe that at age 26, Isner is already past his prime, and will never build on the his career-high ranking.

This year, however, has not been Isner's year, result-wise; he failed to make it past the round of 32 in Melbourne; lost in the first round at Roland Garros (even though he took soon-to-be champion Nadal to five sets); and lost in the second round at Wimbledon.

Of course, the three players that he lost to in each of those tournaments were excellent -- Marin Cilic, Rafael Nadal, and Nicolas Almagro. Even though it's not completely his fault because he hard tough draws, they still aren't great tournament finishes for him.

Perhaps Isner's most famous moment came in his match against Nicolas Mahut at 2010 Wimbledon.

It was certainly a match for the ages, as it shattered past records. It was the longest match in history, lasting eleven hours and five minutes, contained the most games in a match (183), and the fifth set had the most games ever in a single set (138).  That will certainly be a match both players will remember, as Isner triumphed in a 70-68 fifth set.

Isner did, in fact, win a title this year; an ATP 250 tournament in Newport, USA, which is played on grass. His road to the crown included wins over Alex Bolgomolov Jr, as well as Olivier Rochus.

Isner also got to the final on hard courts in Atlanta this year, only to lose to top American ranked player Mardy Fish.

Despite all this success, Isner is criticized for being a one-dimensional player.

He has a huge serve, which, though it seems impossible to return, is broken more often than the average tennis fan would think. He holds serve more often than not, but with better players, he sometimes has trouble doing so.

Also, if you're a big server, your net game should at least be decent, so you can play serve-and-volley. The big American, however, doesn't even have that. He is not confident coming forward, and often nets easy volleys.

His forehand is decent, and though it can't be considered a big weapon, it can sometimes be relied on to put away an easy shot that is created by his serve. His backhand isn't very good at all. He doesn't have a good record when people simply pick on his backhand, because it very often crumbles.

There is a theory that when a player is tall, he or she is going to have trouble with movement. Often, facing a tall opponent, players frequently slice the ball, because they have a hard time getting that low.

Isner is no exception.

This all adds up to one thing: Isner has trouble avoiding his own weaknesses.

Take Roger Federer, for example. Of course, as Rafael Nadal ruthlessly exposed to the world, Roger's high backhand is his weakness. However, Federer, is such an agile player he often works out of having to hit from his backhand.

But with Isner, if someone wants to attack his backhand, his lack of agility will prevent him from being able to move around to his forehand.

Plus, once a good groundstroker can get Isner's serve back, the returner probably has a bettter chance of winning the point than Isner, due to the shakiness of the American's strokes.

And most top players have no problem holding serve; it's the return game that can sometimes cause them problems.

Isner's game has too many flaws to get him far at Flushing Meadows. I predict that he will lose in the second or third round, depending on his draw.

Of course American fans hope Isner gets far.

What do you think?