No marathon repeat: Isner beats Mahut in 3 sets

WIMBLEDON, England - John Isner needed only three sets and about two hours to beat Nicolas Mahut in the first round at Wimbledon, a rematch of the longest match in tennis history.

Isner won 7-6 (4), 6-2, 7-6 (6) Tuesday on Court 3. It was a far-more straightforward — not to mention shorter — match than their 11-hour, 5-minute marathon over three days in 2010 that Isner finally won 70-68 in the fifth set at the All England Club in the first round.

After Mahut sailed a forehand long on the second match point in front of a half-empty crowd on Court 3 at 8:30 p.m. local time, the two men — who became close friends after last year's epic — shared a warm embrace at the net. Isner dominated this match, breaking three times and finishing with 41 winners to only 10 unforced errors.

"It wasn't easy, but obviously it was considerably quicker than the last time we played," Isner said. "I definitely wanted to finish it here and really glad I am because we were running out of daylight."

Last year's match twice was suspended by darkness while it was being played on Court 18, which now has a plaque commemorating the occasion.

"I'm actually glad they put us out here on this court," Isner said. "I don't know if they want to tarnish the legacy of Court 18 by playing a second time. Chances are our match today wasn't going to live up to last year's match."