(CNN) If you think Kevin Anderson's six-and-a-half hour win over John Isner at Wimbledon this year created a bond between the pair, you would be wrong.

It was already there.

Far from Isner hoping for revenge against the South African at this week's ATP World Tour Finals or Anderson keen on pulling another one over the American, they're chuffed to be making history together in London 11 years after facing off in college.

Not since 1989 through John McEnroe and Brad Gilbert have two former university players lined up at the men's year-end championships.

And besides playing college tennis, countless other similarities between the pair exist.

Two of the tallest players at 6-foot-10 and 6-foot-8 -- Isner holds the slender height advantage -- the South African and American are still two of the top servers in tennis.

Isner and Anderson both won two titles this campaign and for each it marks their debut at the elite eight-player World Tour Finals.

Three days following their titanic semifinal at Wimbledon in July -- the second longest grand slam match ever behind Isner's 11-hour win over Nicolas Mahut at the same venue in 2010 -- they achieved career-high rankings inside the top 10.

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And both are longstanding members of the ATP's Player Council.

"It is really great that John and I, two former NCAA tennis players, are both in this year's finals," Anderson, who beat Dominic Thiem 6-3 7-6 (10) Sunday to begin the Lleyton Hewitt group at the indoor O2 Arena, told CNN Sport.

"I think that is a testament to how much your game can develop by playing college tennis. Qualifying for this tournament has been one of my biggest goals for a few years now, so obviously I'm very proud to achieve that for myself and I'm very happy for John to achieve that milestone as well.

"John is a really great guy who I've gotten to know over the years," added Anderson, who recollected that he once shared a hotel room with Isner during a tournament in tennis' minor leagues.

"So my respect for him grew very naturally. We both love dogs and sports, our wives are friends, we know each others' coaches well, we've met each others' families."

Photos: The marathon men: An unlikely bromance The marathon men: An unlikely bromance – American John Isner and Nicolas Mahut will forever be bonded together by their singles clash at Wimbledon in 2010 which became the longest match in tennis history. Hide Caption 1 of 10 Photos: The marathon men: An unlikely bromance An emotional journey – Their "marathon match" lasted 11 hours and five minutes and stretched over three days. Both men went through the mill physically and emotionally as the demands of an eight-hour deciding set took their toll. Hide Caption 2 of 10 Photos: The marathon men: An unlikely bromance Game, set and match – The game that started as a low key first round encounter at 6:13pm on Tuesday 22 June finally finished at 4:48pm on Thursday 24 June, by which time the two protagonists were heroes the world over. Isner finally won 6-4 3-6 6-7 7-6 70-68. Hide Caption 3 of 10 Photos: The marathon men: An unlikely bromance An unlikely bromance – Isner and Mahut embraced at the end of the game and nearly three years on from the match the pair are still close friends. Isner says of Mahut: "He's one of the nicest, classiest guys on the tour." Hide Caption 4 of 10 Photos: The marathon men: An unlikely bromance Scores on the doors – The final set went on so long that it broke the scoreboard. Twice. It first became locked at its maximum 47-47, before it locked again at 50-50 and was reset. Spectators were asked to add 50 games onto the score. Hide Caption 5 of 10 Photos: The marathon men: An unlikely bromance 'An absolute warrior' – Mahut was heartbroken in defeat and suffered another defeat when the pair were drawn to face each other the following year. The 2011 clash ended 7-6 6-2 7-6, took a full nine hours less and featured 149 fewer games. Hide Caption 6 of 10 Photos: The marathon men: An unlikely bromance A slice of history – There is a plaque outside Court 18 at Wimbledon to mark Isner and Mahut's slice of history. Hide Caption 7 of 10 Photos: The marathon men: An unlikely bromance A tall story – Isner's main weapon is his powerful serve helped by his towering height of 6ft 9ins, aptly demonstrated here by CNN Open Court host Pat Cash. To date he has won five singles titles on the ATP Tour but he's hoping success in some of the major tournaments will eclipse the "marathon match" that he's best known for. Hide Caption 8 of 10 Photos: The marathon men: An unlikely bromance Team America – Isner is now the top ranked American player in the world and has become an important part of the country's David Cup team. He recently recorded victory over 17-time grand slam winner Roger Federer when the USA took on Switzerland. Hide Caption 9 of 10 Photos: The marathon men: An unlikely bromance Serb and volley – Isner made his first grand slam quarterfinal at the U.S. Open in 2011 and relishes the big stage: "I think that's one of the main reasons why I beat Federer, I beat Djokovic and I almost beat Rafa at the French Open of all places. That's why you play this game -- to get a crack at those guys. Try to take it to them." Hide Caption 10 of 10

Memorable college match

Isner won their two singles matches in the NCAA ranks, including 6-1 7-6 (1) during the national championships in 2007 when he helped his University of Georgia claim the team title over Anderson's University of Illinois at home.

"Our Wimbledon match I'm never going to forget," Isner told CNN Sport. "But I'm never going to forget that one, either. We had 6,000 fans. It was a huge match. At that time it was the most pressure filled match I'd ever played."

Anderson called it a "really difficult" loss but fondly remembers his college days as a whole.

"To this day we still give each other banter about our university rivalries," said Anderson.

The University of Illinois was where he met his wife Kelsey, who was part of the golf team and describes herself as the "support team chairperson" for her husband. They live in Florida.

In the pro ranks, Isner became the first of the duo to win an ATP title and crack the top 50, 20 and 10 in the rankings, which served as motivation for Anderson. Overall Isner owns 14 titles to Anderson's five, the biggest of which coming at the Miami Masters in March after a dismal 1-6 tournament start to his season.

Kevin Anderson (right) and John Isner hug at the net after their six-and-a-half hour Wimbledon semifinal in July.

But Anderson, 32, has also motivated Isner, 33.

"To see him continue to do so well in his 30s gives me a lot of energy to keep working hard and to try to match him and how hard he works and what he does on and off the court," Isner said.

"I actually saw how hard he worked when we were at college tournaments. You could tell his focus was to be a professional and a very good professional, and he's certainly accomplished that."

Photos: From 'unlucky loser' to winner Five years ago at Wimbledon, Nicolas Mahut (center) lost the longest match in tennis history to John Isner (left). Hide Caption 1 of 11 Photos: From 'unlucky loser' to winner This was the moment of victory for Isner, who prevailed 70-68 in the fifth set in a match that lasted 11 hours, five minutes and stretched to three days. Hide Caption 2 of 11 Photos: From 'unlucky loser' to winner When it was over, the two exchanged a hug at the net. Isner and Mahut became good friends and are still close to this day. Isner says Mahut is "a class act." Hide Caption 3 of 11 Photos: From 'unlucky loser' to winner The loss extended a run of painful defeats for the Frenchman. In 2007, he lost to another American, Andy Roddick, in the final of the Aegon Championships at London's Queen's Club after squandering a match point. Hide Caption 4 of 11 Photos: From 'unlucky loser' to winner There was more heartache for Mahut in the 2013 French Open doubles final. He and partner Michael Llodra lost to Americans Bob and Mike Bryan in a third-set tiebreak. Mahut wept afterward. Hide Caption 5 of 11 Photos: From 'unlucky loser' to winner But Mahut said he built on the loss. And two weeks later, he won his first title on grass in the Netherlands. A month later, he made it two titles, triumphing on grass again in the U.S. Hide Caption 6 of 11 Photos: From 'unlucky loser' to winner Fulfilling a lifelong ambition, Mahut made his Davis Cup debut for France at the not so tender age of 33 in March 2015 against Germany. He and Julien Benneteau clinched the first-round tie. Hide Caption 7 of 11 Photos: From 'unlucky loser' to winner It didn't stop there for Mahut. He collected his third title earlier this month, again on the Dutch grass at Den Bosch. That came after he reached the third round at the French Open. Hide Caption 8 of 11 Photos: From 'unlucky loser' to winner Mahut celebrated with his team after the Den Bosch victory over Belgian David Goffin. All three of his titles, his career-high ranking of 37th and representing France came following the 2010 loss to Isner. Hide Caption 9 of 11 Photos: From 'unlucky loser' to winner He followed up that success by winning the doubles title at Queen's Club in London with Pierre-Hugues Herbert -- also his partner when they reached the 2015 Australian Open final. Hide Caption 10 of 11 Photos: From 'unlucky loser' to winner Mahut said he plans on playing as long as he remains healthy. How would he like to end his career? Playing doubles with Isner at Wimbledon. Hide Caption 11 of 11

Anderson's grand slam finals

Indeed Anderson has usurped Isner's results of late by prevailing in their highest-profile head-to-head at Wimbledon and making two grand slam finals.

He was the first to qualify for London, with new dad Isner booking his spot when 17-time grand slam winner Rafael Nadal became the second player to withdraw due to injury.

Isner meets new world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in Monday's night session in the Guga Kuerten group.

Anderson received plaudits for his humility after downing Isner 26-24 in the fifth set at Wimbledon, not overly celebrating and complimenting his beaten foe.

Headed home. I appreciate all the encouraging messages from everyone. Congrats to @KAndersonATP on the win and best of luck in the final. More importantly, thank you for your class and humility in victory. @Wimbledon see you next year. Sorry for screwing the schedule up today 😳 pic.twitter.com/qlbFcoyl6z — John Isner (@JohnIsner) July 14, 2018

Two months later, they were on the same team at the Laver Cup in Chicago.

"Having always been on opposite sides of the net, John was now on the sidelines cheering me on. It was really memorable," said Anderson.

His success hasn't come as a surprise to one of his former coaches at Illinois, Craig Tiley, now the longtime tournament director of the Australian Open.

It means so much for me to have played in the @Wimbledon final. There are so many positives and great memories I will be taking with me. Thanks to everyone from South Africa and around the world for your support and messages. It has been an incredibly special fortnight. pic.twitter.com/WxKGvl6bho — Kevin Anderson (@KAndersonATP) July 15, 2018

Tiley mirrored Isner when discussing Anderson's work ethic.

"Kevin has always been one of the hardest working players I've had the pleasure to work with, and I'd say he's well and truly among the hardest workers on the tour," Tiley told CNN Sport.

"It's tough to dedicate yourself to tennis week in and week out, and the pathway is rarely quick and straightforward.

"Kevin has never shied away from his goals and has also managed to overcome injuries and other setbacks. He has always surrounded himself with great people. Kelsey has a great understanding of the commitment needed to be a champion."

Whether more university players emulate Isner and Anderson's achievements in the upper echelon of tennis remains to be seen. Of the seven former university tennis players in the men's top 100, Anderson and Isner are the lone two in the top 30.

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Tiley has long "advocated" that US college tennis is a "great opportunity" for players, with Gilbert urging juniors to seriously consider the college route.

"If someone pays you a lot of money when you are 17, a lot of money, you're a great junior, you are getting a huge contract and it looks like you have a great chance to be a pro, I understand that," Gilbert, the former coach of Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick and Andy Murray, told CNN Sport.

"But I do think a lot of kids make the mistake around the world of turning pro too soon and they're not mentally ready for it."

"So many guys are playing into their 30s now so you don't have to rush into it if you are not ready. And college is a great vehicle for that."

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College proved to be the right choice for Wimbledon's towering marathon men.