Tag: Taylor Fritz

American Men Have Lackluster Showing at French Open

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USTA General Manager of Player Development Martin Blackman has been on the job for about a year and the results of the French Open show that not much has changed in the win column for the American men.

The women and girls have had solid performances in the Grand Slams and the men and boys have not. When hired a year ago, Blackman made a realistic plea for fans to be patient. It particular he told fans not to set their expectations too high for the young American boys because they were young, they didn’t need additional pressure, and the transition from junior play to the pro tour was tougher than most people realize.

At the 2016 French Open there were 10 American men entered. First round losers included:
• Brian Baker
• Taylor Fritz
• Rajeev Ram
• Denis Kudla
• Steve Johnson
• Sam Querrey
• Donald Young

Bjorn Fratangelo lost in the second round and ended the tournament 1-1.
Jack Sock bowed out in the third round and finished the tourney 2-1.
John Isner lost in the 4th round and held his seed.

The performance of the American men at the 2016 French Open showed they are some of the top players in the world, but they are no match for the world’s elite players. Time will tell if the younger players such as Taylor Fritz can hang with the best in the world.

Overall the men were 6-10.

The performance of the 9 American boys was equally as dismal. First round losers were:
• Sam Riffice
• John McNally
• Vasil Kirkov
• Ulises Blanch
• Liam Caruana
• Jeffrey John Wolf.

Ulises Blanch finished the tournament 1-1 with a loss in the second round.

Both Nathan Ponwith and Gianni Ross posted 2-1 record, but they bowed out in the third round.

Overall, the American boys were 5-9.

The American men and boys have often struggled on the clay at the French Open.
Hopefully the grass courts at Wimbledon will be more to their suiting.

ATP Rankings Foretell Long Summer for American Men

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The release of the May 23rd ATP rankings foretells another dismal summer for the American men in the Grand Slams. The 3 American men with the greatest chance of success are John Isner, Jack Sock, and Taylor Fritz.

Isner has been consistently ranked 15th to 20th. He is frequently seeded in the top 16 and uses his big serve to hold his seed. His best showing in a Grand Slam event came in 2011 when he reached the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open.

Jack Sock has been inconsistent in his short career. Sock’s best showing in a Grand Slam tourney came in 2015 when he reached the 4th round of the French Open.

The other long shot is newcomer Taylor Fritz. He is at the head of a group of youngsters who are expected to reach the elite ranks in the next 3 to 5 years.

The top 10 includes players from 9 countries. Only Switzerland is represented by two players, Federer and Wawrinka. The average age of the top 10 is 29.2 years. Generally, players above the age of 30 are on the downhill side of their careers.

Top Ten ATP Through May 23rd 2016

Ranking Player Age Points
1 Novak Djokovic 29 16,150
2 Andy Murray 29 8,435
3 Roger Federer 34 7,015
4 Stan Wawrinka 31 6,315
5 Rafael Nadal 30 5,675
6 Kei Nishikori 26 4,470
7 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 31 3,355
8 Tomas Berdych 30 2,850
9 Milos Raonic 25 2,785
10 Marin Cilic 27 2,775

There are 8 Americans ranked in the top 100. They are excellent players who will occasionally have some great wins, but their lack of points demonstrates they are not capable of consistently competing with the top 10 players. The average age of the American players ranked in the top 100 is 25.9 years. Isner and Ram are over 30.

American Players Ranked in the Top 100

Ranking Player Age Points
17 John Isner 31 1,965
25 Jack Sock 23 1,505
34 Steve Johnson 26 1,190
37 Sam Querrey 28 1,135
53 Denis Kudla 23 855
67 Taylor Fritz 18 758
70 Rajeev Ram 32 752
76 Donald Young 26 712

Finally there are 9 Americans ranked between 101st and 200th.

American Players Ranked 101 Through 200

Ranking Player Age
103 Bjorn Fratangelo 22
121 Tim Smyczek 28
134 Austin Krajicek 25
140 Jared Donaldson 19
146 Dennis Novikov 22
147 Ryan Harrison 24
157 Alexander Sarkissian 26
169 Noah Rubin 20
188 Frances Tiafoe 18

The younger players in the above group are learning how difficult it is to make the transition from junior tennis to the pro tour. The older players are wondering if it is time to hang up the racquet.

It will be interesting to see how many of these players make it into the top 100 by the end of the summer.

Next stop, French Open.

American Men Have Weak Performance at Australian Open

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Both the past director of USTA Player Development, Patrick McEnroe, and the current director, Martin Blackman, have spoken highly about the group of American junior boys who are transitioning into the professional ranks. Several of these youngsters took that step at the 2016 Australian Open. Their results showed they have potential, but it is clear they are the new kids on the block.

There were 14 American men in this year’s Grand Slam Down Under. The six first-round losers included newcomer Taylor Fritz and veterans Bjorn Frantangelo, Sam Querrey, Ryan Harrison, Brian Baker, and Donald Young.

Six of the eight remaining players were ousted in the second round with 1-1 records. Noah Rubin, the only youngster, was accompanied by the following players with more experience Denis Kudla, Austin Krajicek, Rajeev Ram, Tim Smyczek, and Jack Sock.

Journeyman Steve Johnson was ousted in the third round with a 2-1 tournament record.

John Isner, was defeated in the round of 16 with a 3-1 record. As is usually the case, he held his seed (#10). Overall the American men won 9 matches and lost 14.

Hats off to Novak Djokovic for capturing his sixth Australian tournament. He is now tied with Roy Emerson for the most number of Australian Open singles tournaments.

Historically, only a handful of Americans juniors have participated in the Australian Open. Only three American boys entered the junior event this year. Ezekiel Clark lost in the first round. Ulises Blanch exited in the second round (1-1) and Liam Caruana lost in the round of 16 (2-1).

Once again the Australian Open proved the current American men are capable of playing at the professional level, but they are no match for the world’s elite players. Time will tell if Fritz, Rubin, and their peers can hang with the best in the world.

Next stop French Open.

American and Russian Juniors Dominate Wimbledon

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The American and Russian juniors dominated the 2015 Wimbledon Junior Championships.

The Russians dominated the girls event. Of the seven players, three made it to the quarters and the two who made it to the semifinals met in the finals. Unseeded Sofya Zhuk defeated fellow Russian Anna Blinkova in the finals in straight sets and gave the Live@Wimbledon Studios a poised and charming interview afterwards. It was refreshing to hear her passion for life and tennis.

Nine of the ten American girls won their first round matches. Unfortunately, Tornado Black and Michaela Gordon were the only girls who made it as far as the quarterfinals. Overall the American girls were 17-10.

American Girls 1st Round 0-1 2nd Round 1-1 3rd Round 2-1 Quarters 3-1 Semis 4-1 Finals 5-1/6-0
Francesca DiLorenzo X
Kayla Day X
Ravenna Kingsley X
Carolyn Dolehide X
Sofia Kenin X
Usue Maitane Arconada X
Claire Liu X
Tornado Black X
Ingrid Neel X
Michaela Gordon X
Total W-L 9-1 6-3 2-4 0-2 0-0 0-0

The American boys owned the tournament. Combined, they had a 21-7 record.

All eight entrants were victorious in their first round matches. Taylor Fritz (#1 seed), Reilly Opelka, William Blumberg, and Tommy Paul (#7 seed) reached the quarters. Blumberg and Paul lost in the quarters and Opelka knocked out Fritz in the semis. The 6’10″Reilly Opelka defeated Mikael Ymer of Sweden, 7-6,6-4. It is great to see an American junior hoist the trophy at the end of the tournament; however, it may not bode well for the entertainment value of the sport when the victor had 15 aces in the championship match and there was only 1 service break in 2 sets.

On a positive note, it was encouraging to see  anAmerican junior win back-to-back Grand Slam events. (Tommy Paul won the French in June). Time will tell whether the recent success of the boys translates to titles for American men in future Grand Slams events.

American Boys 1st Round 0-1 2nd Round 1-1 3rd Round 2-1 Quarters 3-1 Semis 4-1 Finals 5-1/6-0
Taylor Fritz X
Ulses Blanch X
Reilly Opelka X
William Blumberg X
Emil Reinberg X
Nathan Ponwith X
Michael Mmoh X
Tommy Paul X
Total W-L 8-0 5-3 4-1 2-2 2-2 1-0

Next stop, the U.S. Open!  Will the American and Russian juniors have a repeat performance?