In the The first episode of this mini series Analysis of the health status of men’s tennis movements in two central countries in the history of our sport focused on France. Now it is up to the United States.
there laver cup It is the closest thing to Ryder Cup from golf. If at last it was a select group of European players and one of the Americans facing off, in the event that Federer envisioned Europe remains constant, but Instead of the United States, there is an indefinite “rest of the world”. It may be enough to note this difference to understand that US tennis is not what it used to be. Until the beginning of the new millennium, in fact, if a competition of this kind was born, there would be no escape from the confrontation between Europe and the United States..
Once upon a time there were Sampras and Agassi or McEnroe and Connors, or even Ash and Smith, until they brought a time machine to the origins of modern tennis with Richard Sears. The mistake that is made against those whose names are not mentioned is a great thing. Moreover, it is impossible to mention everything 48th American Grand Slam Champion. The last of these is Andy Roddick, the 2003 US Open winner. In short, there is a risk of up to 20 years of abstinence.. In this period, all-star and striped men’s tennis were good players like Blake, Fish, and then Isner, but they got it so brilliantly wrong: they didn’t go much further. big servant. Less talented than the French golden generation of Tsonga & co. , even if the results are similar. Today, however, after a series of false promises (Harrison, Young, and Donaldson to name a few), There are signs of a shift.
If men’s tennis across the Alps, as seen in “Episode” one, hits rock bottom with Roland Garros in 2021, the US’s lowest point came almost simultaneously. The Monday before the start of that edition of the Paris Grand Slam was the first in the computerized-ranking era (began 1973) Without American players in the world’s top 30 players. It’s undoubtedly a symbolic moment, witnessing a hectic decade without any great champions, but not to be confused with a sentence in the years to come either. not by chance, In December 2020,Hall of Fame Steve Flink, in one of our chats with our manager SkanagataHe said of the men’s tennis with stars and stripes crisis:This phenomenon is partially inexplicable to me: we have excellent coaches and very good programs, and although young people flee to other sports, there are always many promises of youth“.
In fact, about ten years ago, abroad, Tennis approach has changed. During the last Wimbledon Championships, Matthew Futterman, in The New York Times, reconstructed the phases of the tipping point. To try to resist competition from the cheapest and most profitable sports immediately, The USTA has developed a program at three levels – local, regional and national – in order to bring together the greatest talent on certain annual occasions but also to allow young players to stay at home and work with their most admired coaches..
In addition, just to address economic problems, i National gatherings are practically free (You only need to pay for a plane ticket to get to your destination) Part of the budget allocated by the Federation enables private coaches to participate so that they can cooperate with Federal technicians in the process of training the players. the goal is notFind a unicorn“, But Build a deep movementHopefully there will be some samples too. The first step appears to have been successfully completed: currently in the United States there are eight actors under the age of 25 in the top 61 reps and five in the top 40. No country can retain its own representatives.
in The first “bet” on FranceWe quoted coach Jean de Witt, who advised the French Federation to choose one path and follow it in the long term. However, in a country of huge proportions like the United States, the key is to think about more facts and adapt to them. For this reason, among the American players on the launch pad, there are some (Fritz, Tiafu, Opelka) who have long been part of the USTA program and others (Broxby, Nakashima and Korda) mainly exited from it, but who in any case managed to take advantage of Important financial support and they were always welcome with open arms in the Federal Centers. It came before Director general From the US Soccer Player Development Division, Martin Blackman, Al The New York Times.
Blackman also emphasized changing the pace of the union on a technical level. The stencil is no longer used in the production of athletes, since all styles of play are equally evaluated. That’s why now States They are also represented in the ATP circuit by unusual players such as Cressy (with him Serve and shot) and Proxby (with a cut on the face and reverse side) And others who aim to complement their brand like Korda (Able to defeat Alkaraz in Red) and Nakashima (Player in all stadiums). It’s the only way to return to the center of the tennis map which has grown exponentially in the meantime.
The USTA has also started the project.”pure generationWhich aims to bring the new generations of tennis closer through innovative training methods. It is necessary if you look at the figures published three years ago before Sports and Fitness Industry AssociationAccordingly, only 4.3 percent of 6- to 12-year-olds play tennis regularly (Also behind golf in that arrangement). The pandemic may have helped attract young people: Tennis has benefited from the closure of gyms and the suspension of team sports, registering more than 22% of practitioners in 2020. Among the 3 million beginners there are perhaps some potential champions.
Meanwhile, in addition to the players who have already made themselves known to the general public, there are also a couple of young talents in the top 30 of the race (in addition to Nakashima who is in eighth place): nava And the Shelton. The latter got his first victory in the ATP Championship last week in Atlanta and put Isner in a serious quandary, which at the end of the match he expressed himself as follows: “American men’s tennis is on the rise and Chilton is part of that“. During the last Wimbledon, eight Americans made it to the third round – there haven’t been many at this level of Grand Slam since 1996. One of them, Fritz (The current number 13 in the world but aims to finish the year in the top ten), he also came close to reaching the semi-finals: he would have been first in a pioneer After four years without l States. However, Taylor broke his fast at least in March as the Americans fast in the Masters 1000 (now also four years old) Winning at Indian Wells. It is one of the five titles won by American tennis players this year.
Now, however, comes the best part. In fact, the season period in which Frtiz & co. They play at home, or in any case on a rooftop which tends to be more suited to their characteristics. You can’t expect to see an American win the US Open already this year – unless there are surprises – but the tournaments underway and those in the coming weeks are an important event. crush test for the new American generation. Much is also expected of Korda, perhaps the player with the widest room for improvement among those born between 97 and 2001, and who struggled in the early part of the season.
and then swing On concrete in North America, there will be Davis. Once again, playing conditions can help the American team pulled into Affordable range with Holland, UK and Kazakhstan. The US has raised the power bowl 32 times – most recently in 2007. Captain Courier and Expert Eisner Are Ready to Borrow Reagan’s Electoral Logo (The last one used by Trump) pTo pay the smaller: Let’s make America great again!
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