USA is the country with the most men’s Grand Slam titles in the history of tennis: it accumulates 52 in the Open Era (147 if you also count those he conquered before the beginning of that modern era in 1968). He is also the one who had the most players at the top of the ranking, six. In other words, he is a super power in the racket world. But It has been two decades since he has had a joy on neither of those two fronts. Although he hopes that this drought will end soon, he is excited about the appearance of a group of talented, charismatic and young players who have already started to make people talk.
Con Taylor Fritz y Frances Tiafoe In the lead, the North American giant dares to dream. In the present edition of US Openthe two of them, together Ben Sheltonmade history because for the first time since 2005, there were three local teams in the quarterfinals in New York.
One is still on the way: Shelton, the new great jewel of that country, who will play one of the semis this Friday and has been showing that he has the game and the head for great things. His chances of advancing to the final are not many: he will have to beat the huge Novak Djokovicwinner of 23 Majors and who will return to first place in the ranking on Monday. But beyond the predictions for that match, his great present and those of his compatriots excite American tennis, which cannot wait to relive its golden years.
The last Grand Slam champion born in the United States was Andy Roddick. The one from Austin was crowned in the US Open 2003 by beating the Spanish in the final Juan Carlos Ferrero. It was her first and only “big” title and it gave her a huge boost to reach number 1 for the first time a couple of months later.
Ben Shelton, a rage among the local public. Photo: AFP.
Roddick continued to be the protagonist in the important events of the following seasons. He was a semi-finalist in Australia, London and New York several times. And he played four other finals: those of Wimbledon 2004, 2005 and 2009 and the 2006 US Open, but he lost them all with Roger Federer, which had already inaugurated that era of the Big 3 that dominated the circuit until not long ago. Maybe he was not the only one to reach the defining stage in this category in the last 20 years.
En Flushing Meadows 2005, un Andre Agassi who was close to hanging up his racket (he did so the following year) fell to Federer in the final, the last one he played in his career. That tournament had been the last with three Americans in the quarterfinals until 2023. On that occasion, Agassi had defeated in the semis Robby Ginepriwho, in turn, had beaten James Blake.
After Roddick’s retirement in 2012, the United States no longer had a superstar in the men’s division (the Williams and some other players were responsible for continuing the rain of titles and celebrations in the women’s division).
Roddick, champion of the US Open 2003. Photo US Open
There were some very good, talented and competitive players who had excellent careers, at the height of the reign of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic. John Isnerfor example, who reached the eighth place in the ranking, was a semifinalist at Wimbledon in 2018 and retired at the age of 38 in this US Open. Sam Querreywho reached the 11th place and played the semis in the All England in 2017. Mardy Fish y Jack Sock, who also reached the top 10 (seventh and eighth, respectively). But none of them managed to end their country’s drought in the highest category of world tennis.
Last year, the excitement was reignited. And it was precisely on the American cement fields. First, with the consecration of Fritz in Indian Wells, in March. In that contest, who was 20th in the ranking at that time, defeated Andrey Rublev (7th) and in the final to Nadal (4th), to lift the most important trophy of his career.
Fritz heads the new breed of Americans that excites tennis in that country. Photo @usopen
The one born in California – who had already been generating expectations for several seasons – uncovered himself and was able to make the final leap. Shortly after, he reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon and closed the year in the top 10. Today, at 25 years old, he is ninth (he was fifth in March) and leads the new generation that makes the United States dream.
Another member of that litter is Tiafoealso 25 years old and tenth in the classification, who was the great local protagonist in last year’s US Open by reaching the semis, in the best performance of his career in a “major”.
This season also started in a big way for the Americans. In it Australian Openthree reached the quarterfinals (the first time that had happened since 2005 in New York). Sebastian Corda23 years old, and Ben Shelton, 20, said goodbye in that round. AND Tommy Paul26 and 14th in the ATP, lost in the semifinals to Djokovic.
Tiafoe was a semi-finalist in New York last year. Photo EFE/EPA/WILL OLIVER
This good production was repeated in Flushing Meadows. Fritz lost with Absent in the quarterfinals and Tiafoe was eliminated by Shelton in a home duel that filled the Arthur Ashe.
The native of Atlanta, who will look for the blow against the Serbian this Friday, was one of last year’s revelations by reaching the round of 16 Cincinnationly his second tournament as a professional, with a resounding victory against Casper Ruud (5th), after having entered the draw thanks to a wild card. And in this season, the first that she has dedicated completely to the ATP circuit, she has already established herself in the top 50 (she is 47th) and has become a rival that no one wants to cross.
Shortly before his duel against Tiafoe, Shelton dared to predict that the American bad streak in Grand Slam will not last long.
“We are facing a great opportunity for tennis in our country. This is what journalists are always asking us: ‘Who is going to be the next Grand Slam champion? Who’s going to make it?’. And I always say the same thing: we are going in a great direction“, he reflected with an atypical maturity for his age.
“I don’t know who it’s going to be ‘the next Andy Roddick’, but I know that everyone is following their own path and doing things their own way and improving year after year. I see it in all the guys and I hope it shows in me too,” she commented.
Maybe not in this US Open, in which Shelton will have to play a perfect match to have a chance of beating Djokovic. But American tennis is beginning to regain prominence in the big events on the calendar and, with a group of very talented players and great personalities, seems on track to end its long drought and inaugurate a new golden era.
2023-09-08 16:28:53
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