There will be no All-American Final in the 2011 Legg Mason Tennis Classic. Top seed Gael Monfils outlasted American John Isner in one rain-delayed semifinal, and wily veteran Radek Stepanek easily handled American youngster Donald Young in the day's earlier semifinal.
Monfils defeated Isner 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (8-6) in a match halted by rain for an hour, then delayed twice more by DC downpours, prior to it's conclusion at 1:15 A.M. The match between the ultra-athletic Monfils and cannon-serving Isner was competitive and nail-biting, as the previous five matches between the two have also been. With the win, Monfils evens the count with Isner, each having taken three matches against the other in their careers.
Monfils will take on 54th-ranked Radek Stepanek in the final. The 32-year-old Stepanek easily dismissed 22-year-old American Donald Young, 6-3, 6-3. After looking impressive in winning his first four matches at the 2011 Classic, Young played extremely sloppy in the semifinal loss.
Monfils will be playing for his fourth career title in Sunday's championship. Stepanek, looking for his fifth title, has beaten Monfils just twice in seven previous meetings, most recently losing to the Frenchman just two weeks ago.
Today's final from the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center will be aired at 3:00 P.M. on ESPN2 and ESPN3.com.