The United States has some emerging players on tour in Frances Tiafoe, Jared Donaldson, Taylor Fritz, and more. However, at present, the country doesn't quite have a player that could be considered a core contender to win the upcoming US Open. Of the candidate players that might do well at Flushing Meadows, Sam Querrey is the one that should stand out the most as players make their final preparations for New York.
What's wrong with Isner and Sock?
Many might counter with John Isner or Jack Sock as America's best hopes for a deep push in the men's singles draw.
Those two players, as of the August 21st rankings, are higher ranked than Querrey. Isner is ranked 14th, Sock is ranked 17th, and Querrey is ranked 21st. But it's more than just rankings that need to be looked at when looking at America's talent. Querrey, in making the Wimbledon semifinals in July, did more in a major than either Isner or Sock has ever done.
With Isner, the talent is there to beat top players in big tournaments. However, the American simply has a game that doesn't work in Grand Slams. His service ability is top-notch, but he's not adept at breaking at all. Accordingly, Isner's matches feature a lot of tiebreakers, and when you are talking about Grand Slams, you are talking about best-of-five-set matches.
When you throw in tiebreakers into those long matches what happens is Isner's matches end up getting too long. For a player of his size, that means lumbering around for hours and hours often in hot conditions. Even when Isner wins a tight and well-contested match, he often loses in the following round due to being simply too tired.
Unless Isner develops a better return game, he's unlikely to make the semifinals of a major, something he has never done.
With Jack Sock, the talent to beat the best has never really been demonstrated. He is still just 24 years old but his current season lacks the exclamation-point victory. His titles this year are only at the 250-level, and one of them was won via default in the final.
Sock is nimble enough to do well in a Grand Slam, but that he has the talent to make the semifinals or further in a major just has never been proven. He is capable of making a Grand Slam semifinal, but at present, he doesn't standout from dozens of similar players that are outside of the top echelon of men's tennis.
Querrey better suited for majors
Querrey hasn't had the amazing results that Isner has had post-Wimbledon. But Querrey brings more to the table when it comes to winning efficiently and conserving energy. Furthermore, Querrey is a much more proven talent than Sock.
The most recent news with Querrey has to do with him pulling out of this week's Winston-Salem draw. The reason that was cited for his withdrawal was just fatigue (i.e., he isn't injured).
It's generally a good sign to see a player rest in the week before a Grand Slam and Isner pulling out of Winston-Salem isn't a bad development for those pulling for him to do well at Flushing Meadows. Conversely, John Isner is still in the Winston-Salem draw and may fatigue himself yet before next week's matches start in New York.
With younger players still waiting in the wings, American tennis fans will likely find themselves looking to Querrey for a deep run at Flushing Meadows. With all the injured talent sidelined, with Roger Federer 36 years old, with Rafael Nadal not winning titles on cement, and with Andy Murray entering the tournament cold for playing time, there may be room in the semifinals for a player of Querrey's ranking. As always, the draw could help or hurt his chances, but at present, he looks like America's brightest light heading into the 2017 Us Open.
