John Isner says he’ll skip the Australian Open because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The big-serving Isner announced his decision after losing to fellow American Sebastian Korda in the quarter-finals of the Delray Beach Open.

Isner, 35, has two young children and said he wanted his family to travel together to “make it as much fun as possible on the road … because I won’t be playing tennis forever”.

But that’s not possible because of the virus, he said, and going to Australia this year would have meant too much time away from his family.

Isner, a former top 10 player now ranked 25th, lost to Korda 6-4 4-6 6-3.