It's been more than two decades since an American man won a Grand Slam title, but Francis Tiafoe and Ben Shelton, preparing for Friday's all-American showdown at the U.S. Open, say they finally have a breakthrough.
“We have a chance in this game,” Tiafoe said.[We had] “A lot of familiar faces have won the tournament. Three great guys have been there at the same time and won the tournament. … I think this is definitely a winnable tournament. We just haven't won it yet. We have five guys in the top 20. They're all dangerous. They're all good. Why not?”
Since Andy Roddick won the 2003 U.S. Open (the last Grand Slam won by an American), the Big Three of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer have dominated tennis.
From 2005 to 2014, 38 consecutive Grand Slam finals featured one of those three players, and since Roddick's win in Flushing, there have been just eight finals without one of those three players.
But Tiafoe and Shelton, who will face off in a rematch of last year's quarterfinals in the third round, are two of five Americans ranked in the top 20.
This is a clear and growing trend among American men, and they're confident it'll continue.
“The quality of U.S. men's tennis is 100 percent improved,” Shelton said. “It's the first time in a while that we've had so many players in a competitive position. … When someone makes a big push, it makes other players cautious and play even better. When I was the No. 1 American for four and a half minutes, Taylor Fritz was in good form.
Day 3 of the US Open on August 28, 2024. Robert Sabo, NY Post
“Everyone wants the next Grand Slam, the next big moment, but it's the incremental improvement and progress that gets Americans closer to the top of tennis.”
That progress will only be spurred by moments like Friday.
Shelton won last year's quarterfinals 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (7), 6-2 before losing to Djokovic.
But for American tennis to appeal to fans of the NBA, NFL and other sports, it needs two young players competing on the big American stage.
“Francis is the best our sport has been in a long time in reaching the casual sports fan on the American side,” Shelton said. “He has friends who are basketball fans who come to his games, friends who travel to see him play, the music industry. He's done a great job of putting American tennis on the map across sports and making it cool again.”
“It's really important that our sport continues to grow and that's reaching young people and fans who are not necessarily tennis fans, but just casual sports.”
It helps that they're both gregarious personalities: Shelton with his showmanship, Tiafoe with his megawatt smile and pop-culture crossover appeal.
“We're both kind of goofy,” Shelton says, “and he definitely knows how to bring out the goofy side in me, and I do the same with him.”
But both are in good form in the open and have each improved recently.
Scheduled to open on August 28, 2024. Robert Sabo, NY Post
Tiafoe has benefited from hiring David Witt, who has coached Venus Williams and Jessica Pegula.
The team was 15-15 this year before Witt was hired, but has gone 11-4 since.
And blessed with the game's biggest serve, Shelton has become a better mover, returner and thinker.
In the past, his arm has hurt after repeatedly reaching back at 150 mph in the second week of a Grand Slam, but now he has more energy to spare.
“This year I've gotten to the point where I don't even have the radar gun on during my service games,” Shelton said. “Everybody's yelling 150, 145, 150, but I've found a really good rhythm up to 134, 135 mph.”
“If I can stay a little lower, I don't have the shoulder pain or soreness that I had last year, which is really important because I started having shoulder pain going into the second week of the Grand Slam. … But I've gotten better at hitting my spots. Whether I hit my spots at 135 or where I hit the box at 147, the result is often the same.”
Both players will show their improvement on Friday, but this match can only be a positive for American tennis.
