It has been somewhat of a generation gap for the United States the last five to six years on the ATP World Tour. That could be about to change.
The last few years have seen an unaccustomed absence of American men at the top of the mens singles game. John Isner is the most recent American to crack the Top ten, but his success has been limited to world no.9 at best. Sam Querrey has struggled to return to the top 20, and Jack Sock is making slow but steady progress up the ranks. But there is a sense that an American has not been able to trouble the upper echelons of the games for some time.
Andy Roddick is still the last American to win a singles Grand Slam title, this came at the US Open in 2003. His last Final at Wimbledon in 2009 still represents the last time that an American progressed that distance, or even to a semi-final. Mardy Fish’s career rededication saw him become the most recent to attend the ATP World Tour Finals in 2011. His untimely illness saw him fall from tennis until his farewell tour earlier this summer, so John Isner remains the sole active American man with a Grand Slam quarter-final to his name.
Depth in numbers is also low. Accustomed to seeing double digit representatives for the USA has not translated into sustained numbers. Steve Johnson, Donald Young and Denis Kudla remain the current support act to the underwhelming triumvirate of Isner, Querrey, and Sock. Michael Russell has finally slid down the rankings, and the short -lived rises of Bradley Klahn, Tim Smyczek, and Ryan Harrison never really instilled belief as future Grand Slam champions. Depth looks like it is coming and maybe even Slam winners.
Much has been made recently about Taylor Fritz. For good reason. The young American has excelled on the junior circuit, winning the junior US Open. His recent run at challengers is no fluke, defeating Dustin Brown in back-to-back tournaments, and took his first tour win in Nottingham, where he defeated Pablo Carreno Busta. His ranking has risen over four hundred places in two weeks. Expect to see that rise further before the end of the year. More than that, expect him to join the top 100 before the conclusion of 2016.
Jared Donaldson received the ultimate endorsement of a young player in the off-season. He was invited to Dubai to be Roger Federer’s training partner. Donaldson also already a challenger winner, winning the Maui event earlier this year, and scored his first ATP win in Memphis. Donaldson has an aggressive game, though suffers from a lack of serving consistency, rarely serving above sixty percent. He is also prone to rants and challenging calls. This was particularly evident in his defeat to Fritz in the Sacramento final just a few weeks ago. However, he has improved on tour, adding Somdev Devvarman and Nicolas Mahut to his main draw scalps. He also beat Denis Kudla in a challenger last week. Improve the serve and there is no telling how high he can go.
Tommy Paul is a name that invariably has stood next to Fritz’s in Junior Grand Slam Finals. They split their matches, Fritz winning the US Open and Paul taking the crown at the French Open. Paul also won their only senior meeting on clay in a futures event. His qualification run at the US Open shows he has what it takes to mingle with the big boys, with wins over Blaz Rola, Jose Hernandez-Fernandez, and Marco Chiudinelli taking him to the main draw before a defeat to Andreas Seppi. A surprisingly good player on clay judging by career results so far, he has a bright future.
Francis Tiafoe may be more familiar than the likes of Paul and Fritz, but the young man from Hyattsville, Maryland is also making his steady way to the top. He’s beaten Paul, and has made Challenger finals. He also scored his first main draw victory over James Duckworth. Earning the USTA’s French Open wildcard due to Challenger results, he fell to Martin Klizan in straight sets. The result occurred in the US Open to Viktor Troicki, but Tiafoe will likely soon earn a direct right to Grand Slam play.
Those four may be the biggest names, but there are more wildcards rising the ranks for the USA. Reilly Opelka, is a 6’10 server who took the Wimbledon Junior title this year, and is now making his first steps on the seniors. Dennis Novikov is twenty-one, and finished with university is now making quick strides to the top. As an eighteen year old he beat Jerzy Janowicz in the US Open first round, before taking a set from Julien Benneteau in the second round. Back-to-back challenger titles suggest Novikov could be another shot. His opponent in both those finals was Ryan Harrison, who might be showing signs of a career resurgence after he stormed to the top 50 as a teen. Michael Mmoh is a close friend of Tiafoe and just defeated Harrison. Multiple Futures titles suggests he will soon be making strides in Challengers. Bjorn Fratangelo has sat tantalisingly outside the top 100 for over a year now. A former French Open Junior winner, he continues to get results on clay. Mackenzie McDonald is another college player who raises eyebrows every time he plays main events. He qualified for the 2013 Western and Southern Open, defeating Nicolas Mahut and Steve Johnson. He also beat Sam Groth in a 2014 challenger, and Tim Smyczek this year.
Expect at least a few of these names to join the other four likely to crack the Top 100. Can any of them win Grand Slams? It is too early to tell (my money’s on Fritz).
