Roddick, Isner Power Into Legg Final

John Isner, the country's most dominant college tennis player just a few months ago, reveled in a rare thrill earlier this week when he got to meet Andy Roddick, shaking his hand in the training room of Washington's William H.G. Fitzgerald Tennis Center.

Today, Isner will join Roddick on the venue's Center Court, where they'll contest one of the most implausible finals in the 39-year history of the Legg Mason Tennis Classic.

"He's been really nice to me so far," Isner said of Roddick, 24, the world's fifth-ranked player. "I don't think he's going to be too nice to me tomorrow."

Isner, 22, who turned pro less than two months ago, earned his championship spot in what has become signature fashion this week, pulling off yet another stunning upset in a third-set tiebreak. In this case, he toppled ninth-seed Gael Monfils of France, a player Roddick had praised earlier in the day as probably the best athlete the sport has ever seen, 6-7 (7-4), 7-6 (7-1), 7-6 (7-2), before a packed crowd of screaming, incredulous fans.

As a result, the tournament will host only its third all-American final since 1990. The 6-foot-9 Isner, for his part, has almost certainly locked up a wild-card entry for the U.S. Open. And the sport's promoters seem to have found the next face of American tennis.

Isner was cheered like a rock star after the victory, which came after Monfils, who had played so brilliantly most of the match, committed a rash of errors when it mattered most.

Asked about Isner's performance, Monfils declared that he might have the best serve on the pro tour -- shocking praise for a nascent pro. And it's even more impressive coming from Monfils, no slouch in the serving department himself. The Frenchman fired 25 aces during the match to Isner's 23.

The Isner-Monfils semifinal followed Roddick's 7-6 (9-7), 7-6 (7-5) victory over the hard-serving Ivo Karlovic of Croatia earlier in the day. Though the story lines of the matches were similar -- with players swapping aces and service winners and only occasionally engaging in rallies -- the Isner-Monfils battle was more entertaining because of the raw emotion of the players, who laid their frustration, exhaustion and euphoria bare.

Monfils opened the match by blasting four consecutive aces, serving notice that Isner wasn't the only big server on Center Court.

Isner, who boasts remarkable on-court composure, wasn't ruffled. "I just looked at it as he held serve," he said.

Isner stumbled on the first point of the tiebreak, however, sending a forehand long to give Monfils the edge, and the Frenchman served it out to win the first set.

Isner sloughed off signs of fatigue in the second set -- understandable given that he has played a match nine of the last 10 days, coming to Washington immediately after winning a Challenger event in Lexington, Ky.

When the Legg Mason began, Isner told himself he'd be proud to win even one match. In fact, he told himself he'd be proud simply to have a good showing against his first-round opponent, Britain's Tim Henman. But he beat Henman and every other player in his path, playing so many matches that he broke his last pair of shoelaces. And the soles of his tennis shoes (he packed only two pair for the extended road trip) were so threadbare that his agent had to find him a new pair for yesterday's semifinal.

Properly outfitted, and with his energy restored by his fervent cheering section, Isner got the first minibreak in the second-set tiebreak to level the match at one set each.

Whenever his posture drooped, his family and friends shouted, "Let's go, Johnny!" and "Let's go, Georgia!" (Isner's alma mater) -- as if it were a Bulldogs home football game rather than a tennis match. Alcohol, Isner hinted later, may have played a role in their enthusiasm.

Monfils became the first player in three days to break Isner's serve, taking a 6-5 lead in the decisive third set. But with the Frenchman serving for the match, the momentum shifted again. Monfils couldn't land a first serve, and Isner attacked his second serves, coaxing one errant forehand after another. Once again a tiebreak settled the set, with Isner bolting to an insurmountable lead.

The pattern has repeated itself all week, with Isner gaining confidence with every successful tiebreak and every improbable victory. "It's like a snowball effect," he said. "I keep getting more and more confident. I don't know how I've done it."

Roddick, who fired 12 aces in his victory over Karlovic, has progressed in similar fashion, gaining confidence with each round. Asked if he thought the match against the 6-10 Karlovic had prepared him for a potential meeting with the big-serving Isner, Roddick quipped: "Well, Isner. . . . he's shorter than Karlovic. So that's good!"

Roddick delighted fans in the first set with a 151 mph ace that drew huge cheers and thunderous applause, as well as a hand-lettered sign that read, "Nice One, Andy!" and a shout of, "Marry me, Andy!"