There was a time when the American men dominated the Wimbledon championships. Remember how the country produced multiple winners at the All England Club between 1920 and 2000? One can imagine the might of US supremacy on the grass court in London by the sheer fact that American men won the gentlemen’s singles title 33 times in 80 years. However, the story of the last 25 years has been anything but hopeful. Since Pete Sampras‘ seventh and last Wimbledon triumph in 2000, none of his compatriots have been able to capture the trophy. And it looks like the unfortunate elusive trend may continue further after a poor performance of young blood, even before the Wimbledon’s commencement.

For the uninitiated, the qualifying phase before Wimbledon is currently underway this week. By Sunday, the final results will indicate who among the qualifiers will confirm their spots in the main draw of the grass major. But when it comes to American men, the latest news is not good at all.

American WTA star Coco Gauff‘s ex-coach, Brad Gilbert, took to X and expressed his concerns over the American qualifiers’ poor run this week. Why? Gilbert revealed, “No American 🇺🇸 men in last rd of quallies @Wimbledon 4 lost today in 2nd rd, wonder 💭 when if ever that happened @SharkoTennis @ParsaBombs @tennistweetscom”

To be precise, four American youngsters namely Emilio Nava, Zachary Svajda, Colton Smith, and Elio Spizziri have lost in the second round of Wimbledon qualifying stage on Wednesday, which means they are already out of the third and final round of qualification. While Nava lost against Denmark’s Dominic Stephan Stricker, Svajda was ousted by Hungarian Márton Fucsovics. On the other hand, Smith and Spizziri lost against Japan’s Yosuke Watanuki and Aussie Alex Bolt respectively.

This result from 2025 qualifiers, however, comes as no surprise. While Gilbert might be shocked, last season turned out to be in a similar fashion as well. During the 2024 Wimbledon’s qualifying stage, four American men lost in the second round. Nicolas Moreno De Alboran was defeated by Australia’s James Duckworth and Patrick Kypson lost against Switzerland’s Leandro Riedi. Interestingly, the other two men were the same who have lost this week. Svajda failed against Frenchman Hugo Grenier while Nava lost to another French player, Maxime Janvier.

It’s been more than two decades since an American man won the title at the All England Club. While the qualifiers haven’t performed well, those who are already in main draws are still sparking hopes. Take, for example, Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton.

Fritz, Shelton backed up to lead American dreams ahead of Wimbledon

Ben Shelton has been proving his mettle at the biggest stages since he turned pro three years ago. Remember how he surprised everyone after reaching the semis at the 2023 US Open? Then at the Australian Open this year, he became the first American man (after 22 years since Andy Roddick) to reach the semis down under. But that wasn’t it. The 22-year-old also made his presence felt at the French Open earlier this month. He managed to enter the fourth round on the Parisian clay. His fine performance even earned him a spot in the top 10 for the first time in his career.

Looking at his rapid growth, former Australian ATP icon John Fitzgerald recently claimed that Shelton can “do serious damage” on grass. During an episode of The Tennis podcast, he said, “He’s got some talent and some strengths and weaknesses that make him look like a more mature player. But I don’t know, I think on the clay, you would imagine he would struggle a bit more, but on the hard court, it’s obviously where he grew up and on the grass he can do serious damage. So I think when you serve that well, no one wants to play you.”

Similarly, former American pro Andy Roddick believes that Taylor Fritz is the one to watch out at the All England Club. Fritz recently made a comeback after his first round exit at the French Open. He went on to win the grass event in Stuttgart this month. In the summit clash of the BOSS Open, the World No.4 beat Germany’s Alexander Zverev. Looking at his return to form, in time, ahead of Wimbledon, Roddick cautioned everyone to not ignore him.

During an episode of his Served podcast, the 2003 US Open winner said, “Don’t sleep on Taylor. Fritz on grass, I want to say, I’ll get this slightly wrong, but if I’m not perfect, you get the gist of it, I think. He’s won seven or eight times on tour, and four of them have been on grass. You know, he was a couple of points away from the semis, where he would have played Kyrgios.”

Speaking of their respective Wimbledon records, Shelton’s played two campaigns in London. Last season, he did shine while reaching the fourth round before losing to World No.1 Jannik Sinner. On the other hand, Fritz has played eight campaigns at the All England Club, reaching the quarterfinals twice (2022 and 2024). What are your thoughts on these two American pros’ chances this time? Let us know in the comments below.