Isner's no. 106 ranking in November 2007 was just good enough to get him direct entry into his first Australian Open after several players ranked above him dropped out. He was defeated in the first round of the 2008 Australian Open by veteran Fabrice Santoro of France. Teamed with Croat Ivo Karlović, who stands half an inch taller (Karlović is currently the joint tallest player on the ATP World Tour alongside Reily Opelka), Isner also lost in the first round of doubles.