Only three American men made it to the fourth round of the U.S. Open last week.
Frances Tiafoe is currently ranked number 50 in the world. On Friday night Sept. 3rd, Tiafoe defeated 5th seed Andrey Rublev in a 5 set match. Unfortunately, he lost in the next round to Felix Auger Aliassime.
Jensen Brooksby is currently 99th in the world. Brooksby shocked world number one Novak Djokovic by taking the first set 6-1 in their fourth-round match at the U.S. Open. Djokovic rallied winning the next three sets.
Reilly Opelka also lost in the fourth round of the U.S. Open this year. He is currently 89th in the world. He is the tallest ranked ATP player at 6'11.
There are no Americans ranked in the top 30 of the world according to DFW media writer Richie Whitt. He says this is the first time in 50 years of rankings that this has happened.
Andy Roddick was the last American man to win a Grand Slam event. He won the 2003 US Open. He was the last American man to finish the year-ranked number one.
Pete Sampras is the last American man to win Wimbledon in 2000. Sampras spent the 90s dominating tennis.
Andre Agassi is the last American man to win the French Open and Australian Open. He is also a former number one in the world.
According to Dallas tennis teaching pro Louie Segovia, the United States Tennis Association (USTA) needs to do more to get tennis to the inner cities. Right now, they only have training centers in Florida and California.
Segovia feels giving city kids free equipment and lessons will help. He also thinks the USTA needs to put tennis centers in more places like Dallas, Houston, and Austin.
Louie Segovia's brother Vince Segovia is also a tennis teaching pro. He teaches at the Austin Tennis Academy.
According to Vince Segovia, the Austin Tennis Academy offers junior programs for all ages and levels with the goal of playing college tennis one day.
Both Segovias and Whitt think the one American to watch is Sebastian Korda. His dad won is a former Grand Slam champion. Nelly Korda, his sister, has won a major on the LPGA. He maybe joining them both one day.