Andy Roddick has delivered his thoughts on a big injury worry for one of America’s top prospects ahead of Wimbledon.
This is a country with a proud history in tennis, and that is currently exhibited through its strength in depth.
Coco Gauff leads the way, as the recent French Open champion, but on the men’s side there are now three US players all inside the top ten.
It marks a real golden generation for the country, but one that still desperately needs a Grand Slam title to reaffirm that notion.
Losing one of their star men to injury will definitely hurt their chances, especially given how potent Tommy Paul has been on grass in the past.
Andy Roddick makes worrying claim about Tommy Paul’s injury
Having impressed all throughout the clay-court season, the transition to grass was expected to be a tricky one.
That being said, the 28-year-old has made it with ease in the past, exhibited by his Queen’s title last year.
However, frustratingly the opportunity to defend his crown was cruelly ripped from him, as he was forced to pull out due to an injury sustained in Paris.
Roddick, touching on this, told the Tennis Channel Live podcast: ‘We’re guessing because we don’t know the extent of Tommy Paul’s injury. We haven’t heard anything. Obviously, it’s significant.
‘The ab tear that he had at Roland Garros. Won Queen’s last year. So, in order not to defend on a surface that he is very fluent on, you got to think there’s something very real there.’
What American men could challenge for the Wimbledon title?
Paul would likely have been one of the favourites to spearhead American success on the men’s side at Wimbledon, but he is not the highest-ranked they boast.
Taylor Fritz currently holds that title, but could see his seeding drop from fourth to fifth after an underwhelming early exit at Queen’s.
However, this came after he won the title in Stuttgart, cementing his ability to compete on this surface. His big-serving style should at least guarantee him a run to the quarter-finals at the All-England Club.
Elsewhere, Ben Shelton will be hoping to use his own thunderous serves, combined with a little more ingenuity than Fritz to impress.
He too suffered an early exit at Queen’s, and has struggled to impress at Wimbledon in the past either.
However, a far more mature and improved player over the last year, the 22-year-old has every chance of bypassing his previous best performance of reaching the fourth round. Especially after Carlos Alcaraz’s prediction about Shelton’s future following their match at Roland Garros.
Elsewhere, stars like Brandon Nakashima, Frances Tiafoe and Alex Michelsen will all pose threats as dark horses.
