No Fritz or Gauff: Jack Sock and John Isner leave top Americans out of their picks at Indian Wells
WTA
With the start of Indian Wells, local fans once again have hopes of seeing a home player in the final – and why not – an American champion. Both men and women from the U.S. have fallen short in recent decades.
On the men’s side, it took 21 years after Andre Agassi defeated Pete Sampras in the 2001 final for another American to lift the trophy at Indian Wells. In 2022, Taylor Fritz secured one of the biggest wins of his career by beating Rafael Nadal in the final, ending the Spaniard’s 22-match winning streak.
For the women, the drought has been even longer. For years, Venus and Serena Williams boycotted the tournament and did not compete for a large part of their careers. Serena was the last American to win the title back in 2001. After that, Lindsay Davenport lost three consecutive finals (2003–2005), and when Serena returned to Tennis Paradise, she fell just short of the title, losing to Victoria Azarenka in the final.
Will a home champion emerge after years of struggles
In the latest episode of Nothing Major, John Isner – 2012 finalist – and Jack Sock debated which American players have the best chance of a deep run at Indian Wells. This time, with local players in great form on both tours, local hopes seem to be revived, even if they are not the outright favourites.
On the men’s side, three players are in the top 15, with seven seeded in the top 32. In the women’s draw, three Americans are ranked in the top five, with six in the top 20.
The most recent American Grand Slam champion is Madison Keys, who won the Australian Open and enters the tournament as world No. 5. However, she still trails Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula in the rankings, with only Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka ahead of them.
Among the men, Taylor Fritz, the 2022 champion and world No. 5, recently reached his first Grand Slam final at the 2024 US Open. However, Jack Sock believes the draw favours Tommy Paul (No. 11), who recently made his debut in the top 10.
“I am going to go with Tommy Paul as the American to go the furthest,” Sock told the Nothing Major podcast. “I think he has a favourable section of the draw, and if he makes it to Medvedev, I don’t see why he can’t win that.”
“Casper is the biggest seed in his section. And then I am going to side with Stevie, but Emma Navarro for me is going to be the last American woman standing.”
Isner, on the other hand, picked Ben Shelton (American No. 3) and Pegula (American No. 3). “I am going to go with Ben Shelton and Jessie Pegula. I think if the courts are fast, it’s going to suit her game very well.”
Surprisingly, neither Sock nor Isner chose the highest-seeded Americans, leaving both Fritz and Gauff out of their predictions.
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