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It’s been a miserable couple of decades for American men at the Grand Slams. Andy Roddick’s 2003 US Open remains the last time an American won a major title, while Roddick’s epic 2009 Wimbledon loss in five sets to Roger Federer remains the last time an American was even in a major title. final.
That streak isn’t likely to be broken any time soon, but the American male contingent is making its presence felt at Wimbledon so far. With Brandon Nakashima, Jenson Brooksby and Taylor Fritz advancing to the third round on Thursday, and Jack Sock winning two sets in a suspended match, the Americans will represent eight of the final 32 players remaining for the title.
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That already makes this the Americans’ most successful first week of Wimbledon since 1993, when nine players reached the third round. Since 1997, no more than five Americans had come that far.
Here’s a look at the remaining players representing the US and their chances of winning three more matches and advancing to the semifinals.
John Isner
Years: 37
Best Wimbledon result: Semifinal (2018)
Surprise level (out of 10): 7
Despite the great serve that has kept him in the top 20 in the world for a long time, Isner has not had much success at Wimbledon. Despite a run to a semi-final four years ago, this is only his fifth time in the third round from 13 appearances. And to get here, he had to beat Andy Murray on Center Court, a two-time Wimbledon champion who had beaten Isner in the previous eight meetings. (Murray, to be fair, hasn’t been the same player since major hip surgery in 2019.)
Semifinal chances (out of 10): two
Isner’s career could end on Friday against Jannik Sinner, the Italian 10th seed with great power from the ground. Even if Isner pulls it off (they split their two meetings last year on hard courts), he projects to face 19-year-old sensation Carlos Alcaraz in the round of 16 and then No. 1 seed Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals. .
Frances Tiafoe
Years: 24
Best Wimbledon result: Third round (2018, 2021, 2022)
surprise level: 0
Tiafoe earned a big draw that heralded a huge potential streak and easily took down the qualifiers in the first two rounds. Tiafoe has done well on grass in the past, including a win over Stefanos Tsitsipas at Wimbledon last year and a Challenger Tour title last summer in Nottingham. His ability to hit the ball hard and flat is a real asset on this surface.
Semi-final chances: 7
This is still a very manageable section of the “Big Foe” draw. Friday’s matchup will be tough against Alexander Bublik, a great server with an unpredictable and inconsistent streak. He is a very tough customer when he is playing well, but it is a game that Tiafoe can absolutely win. An unseeded player, France’s Ugo Humbert or, more likely, Belgium’s David Goffin, would wait in the next round. The highest seed remaining in this quarter is No. 9 Cam Norrie, who has never made it past the third round of a Grand Slam. Lots of opportunities here.
Steve Johnson
Years: 32
Best Wimbledon result: Fourth round (2016)
surprise level: 8
Despite having a good style of play on grass courts, Johnson has not had good results in the last two years and barely stays in the top 100 ranking. He was a big underdog in the first round to No. 18 seed Grigor Dimitrov, but Dimitrov was forced to retire with a groin injury in the second set. After that, Johnson eliminated British wild card Ryan Peniston, who had never before been in a Grand Slam singles main draw. Johnson will draw Norrie, which is not an impossible matchup. However, he would again be an underdog against Paul in the fourth round and someone like Tiafoe in the quarters. It’s not impossible, but it seems unlikely that he could take this much further.
Semi-final chances: 4
tommy paul
Years: 25
Best Wimbledon result: Third round (2022)
surprise level: 5
This is Paul’s debut in the Wimbledon main draw, but he has been in very good form of late with a career-high ranking of 32nd. He also reached the quarter-finals in the Queen’s grass-court prep events. Club and Eastbourne, beating Denis Shapovalov. , Stan Wawrinka and Sinner on the way. Paul has done very well by easily beating two aging veterans in Fernando Verdasco and Adrian Man heading into his third-round match against No. 68 Jiri Vesely.
Semi-final chances: 7
Like Tiafoe, the draw has been broken very favorably for Paul. He will be the favorite against Vesely and could definitely beat Norrie or Johnson in the Round of 16. It wouldn’t be too much of a surprise to see him and Tiafoe square off for a spot in the semi-final.
sock
Years: 29
Best Wimbledon result: Third round (2016)
surprise level: 8
Sock was in the top 10 five years ago, but right now he’s more of a doubles specialist. In fact, he came into Wimbledon with just eight ATP-level singles matches in 2022 (3-5) while primarily playing on the Challenger tour. Grass certainly suits his game with a great serve and forehand, and he had a favorable matchup in the first round against qualifier Bernabe Zapata Miralles. It would have been tough to see him get past No. 6 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the second round, but fellow American Maxime Cressy saw to that with an upset victory. Sock led Cressy 6-4, 6-4 in Thursday’s second-round match that was suspended due to darkness.
Semi-final chances: two
Sock should absolutely win one more round, but No. 11 seed Taylor Fritz would likely wait in the round of 16 and then Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals. It probably won’t happen unless someone takes out Nadal in the meantime.
taylor fritz
Years: 24
Best Wimbledon result: Third round (2021, 2022)
surprise level: 0
Fritz is having a career year and is playing some very good tennis lately, winning his biggest title in March at Indian Wells and the Eastbourne crown last week on grass. He is now a guy that the top players take seriously, and he’s been making his way to a breakthrough in Slam. As the No. 11 seed, he has efficiently taken care of business in the first two rounds.
Semi-final chances: 4
It would be a huge disappointment if Fritz didn’t make it to the quarter-finals given the relatively easy draw ahead of him. But if it comes down to it, could he beat Nadal for a place in the semi-final? Unlikely, for obvious reasons. But Fritz has a heavy serve and the kind of game that could give Nadal trouble on grass. It is worth noting that Fritz beat an injured Nadal earlier this year in the Indian Wells final.
Brandon Nakashima
Years: twenty
Best Wimbledon result: Third round (2022)
surprise level: 5
It’s been a slow build over the last two years, but making third rounds in a row at the French Open and Wimbledon indicates he’s on the right track. Known for his excellent backhand, the San Diego native and former University of Virginia star was able to take advantage of his second-round tie against No. 13 seed Denis Shapovalov, who has been in terrible form lately.
Semi-final chances: 5
Colombian Daniel Galán, ranked No. 109, should be a favorable matchup for Nakashima in the third round. In the fourth round, he would face either Nick Kyrgios or No. 4 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas. Although Nakashima would be a clear loser against either, both have shown that they are beaten by lower-ranked players at Grand Slams. But the other half of that room is completely open.
Jenson Brooksby
Years: twenty-one
Best Wimbledon result: Third round (2022)
surprise level: 8
A lot of people in tennis think Brooksby could be the guy to eventually break the Grand Slam drought with his unorthodox, hard-to-read game. He certainly put himself on the radar last year at the US Open by reaching the fourth round and giving Novak Djokovic everything he could handle at Arthur Ashe Stadium. But let’s face it: even with a good draw, 34th-ranked Brooksby didn’t seem ready to play on grass in the prep events. It’s quite shocking that he found some form here with straight-set wins over Mikhael Kukushkin and Benjamin Bonzi.
Semi-final chances: 5
Brooksby got a big break when Matteo Berrettini pulled out of his section of the draw due to COVID, so he will face Chile’s Christian Garin, known primarily for his clay-court prowess. Brooksby isn’t a sure thing, but the draw section for him isn’t daunting. If he makes it to the quarters, you could see the peculiar game of him frustrating Kyrgios or Tsitsipas.
