Who will end the 20-year wait for a Grand Slam champion? America is looking for a renewal of the golden era!

When Andy Roddick, just twenty-one years old, won the 2003 US Open at home, the future of American tennis seemed assured for years to come. But few could have imagined then that this triumph would still be the last today. Ending the longest-ever wait for an American Grand Slam title would be the next generation, led by the likes of Taylor Fritz and Sebastian Korda.

Fifty-three, that’s how many grand slams American tennis players have won since the beginning of the open era (1968). Names like Sampras, Agassi or McEnroe are familiar to every tennis fan. But what about the likes of Fritz, Korda or Shelton?

It is this young trio that could be responsible for bringing US tennis back to the top. In the current edition of the ATP rankings, we find in the elite hundred no less than fifteen players of American nationality, the most prominent representation of any country. However, the best ranked player is Taylor Fritz, ranked eighth.

Taylor Fritz

Already in his junior years, the twenty-five-year-old tennis player from San Diego made his presence felt. After winning the junior US Open title in 2015, he was named junior player of the year.

In the same season, Fritz turned pro and even jumped into the top 250 players in the world. The following year, Fritz moved into the top 100, and also became the youngest American finalist in an ATP tournament since 1988.

The breakthrough came in 2022, when Fritz scored the biggest success of his career at the so-called “fifth Grand Slam” in Indian Wells. Despite an ankle injury, he managed to beat Rafael Nadal in the final without losing a set and thus became the first home winner in more than twenty years.

Another success was the Wimbledon quarter-finals, where Nadal returned the defeat after a fight, yet the 25-year-old moved into the top ten.

Taylor Fritz’s game is exactly what is expected of the American. However, a hard serve and an uncompromising forehand do not win matches on their own.

“He has great strokes. He is undoubtedly in the top 10 and is a significant threat at Grand Slams. But to win one, he has to go the extra mile,” says seven-time Grand Slam champion John McEnroe of Taylor Fritz’s ability.

Sebastian Korda

Three years younger than his compatriot Sebastian Korda is experiencing a similar shift. The son of a former Czech tennis player would love to build on his father’s success and according to many experts, he is on a great path this year.

The Florida native belongs to a very successful sporting family. Both parents are former top tennis players, while his older sisters are multiple major champions in golf (the equivalent of a tennis grand slam). Sebastian has thus cast himself in the role of the worst athlete in the family.

Even among the juniors, the American with a Czech passport excelled. In 2018, he even conquered the junior Australian Open, thanks to which he became the world number one.

After this success, Korda has already started to focus on the professional circuit. He played his first match on the ATP thanks to a wild card at the New York event, but lost to compatriot Tiafoe in the first round.

2020 was a breakthrough year. After advancing to the fourth round of the French Open, where he lost to Rafael Nadal, Korda suddenly jumped just outside the elite 100 of the rankings. He broke into it immediately the following season, in which he claimed his only ATP title to date, when he captured the 250 clay tournament in Italy as an unseeded player.

Since then, Sebastian Korda has managed to regularly advance to the advanced stages of tournaments.

However, the start of 2023 has been his most successful year yet. Immediately at the opening event in Adelaide, he was far from his second career triumph. After more than three hours of struggle and a missed match point, he finally fell to Novak Djokovic’s racket.

Radek Štěpánek’s ward brought his lifetime form to Melbourne, where he reached the quarter-finals, his most notable achievement to date. Although he had to give up the fight for the semi-finals after problems with his right wrist, he has moved up in the rankings to the current 26th place.

The 22-year-old American is benefiting from his practically two metres of height. He uses a hard serve and hits from the baseline, but he can also move well.

“If I had to bet on one of our players, it would probably be Korda. He’s the youngest of the elite group and has the most potential at the moment,” said John McEnroe when asked who he sees as his Grand Slam hope.

Ben Shelton

Only twenty years old, Ben Shelton has only made his presence known in the last six months, yet he can already be found in the top 50 of the ATP rankings.

Even the lanky left-hander comes from a pure tennis family, his father still trains him. Shelton is interesting not only for his game, but also for the way he made his way among the pros. Until last summer, he played exclusively for the University of Florida team.

When he became a national varsity champion, he started making the rounds at senior tournaments. Thanks to a few wild cards, he had the opportunity to play in several Challenger tour tournaments where he started picking up win after win.

Ben Shelton first made his name known at the Masters in Cincinnati in August. In the second round he even swept Casper Ruud, the world number five at the time, and began to be in the public eye.

After dropping out in the first round of the US Open, the young left-hander announced a full-fledged move to the professional ranks. He finished 2022 with three titles at Challengers and even broke into the top 100 of the ATP rankings.

The new season marked Shelton’s first travel outside the US in his life, and his trip to Australia was indeed a success. In only his second appearance in a Grand Slam main event, the former American football player reached the quarterfinals.

Shelton is the quintessential American player. At the Australian Open, he not only had the fastest serve of the entire tournament, but also the highest number of winning strokes.

With his aggressive game and the slight brashness that the youngest member of the emerging generation displays on court, one can undoubtedly expect a steep rise in the rankings this year.

In recent years, American tennis has undoubtedly possessed its most promising group of young talent. The task is clear, to win a Grand Slam title in the near future. The first chance to end a 20-year wait will come in May on the Paris clay.

Source: ATP, The Guardian, sportskeeda