Jack, the 22-year-old hope of US tennis

LONDON: It has been 12 years since an American man won a grand slam title, the longest US drought since grand slam tennis began in 1877.

The success of Serena and Venus Williams over the past decade and that of the Bryan brothers in doubles has maintained the sport’s profile in the US, but the longer the country goes without a male singles champion, the more desperate it will be for someone to step up.

For a country so used to success, Andy Roddick’s US Open win of 2003 must seem like a lifetime ago. Roddick is back at Wimbledon this year, as a commentator for the BBC. He will have a birds-eye view of a man who could, perhaps, be the next American man to lift a grand slam singles trophy.

At 22, Jack Sock is seeded at Wimbledon for the first time, having climbed 46 places from this time last year to his current mark of 31 in the world, making him the No 2 American behind John Isner. He’s already a Wimbledon champion, having won the doubles with Canada’s Vasek Pospisil last summer. He won the mixed doubles at the US Open in 2011.

Many former players, includ- ing the three-time Wimbledon champion John McEnroe, believe it’s only a matter of time before the man with the big serve and a forehand with as much spin as Rafael Nadal becomes his country’s No 1. Sock, as modest a man as you could hope to meet, is not daunted by the idea of leading America’s resurgence and if it happens, he believes he will be ready.

“I take pride being an American,” he told the Guardian. “I love being from the States and having that pride. But at the same time, there is a lot of expectation. If I were to one day win a slam, or help them win a Davis Cup or help them win an Olympics or whatever it is, that would almost be the ultimate goal for me, doing what I can to help the nation I grew up in.”

There are more than a few similarities between Sock’s game and that of Roddick. Born in Nebraska, Sock moved to Kansas City when he was young and soon developed a forehand that is becoming one of the biggest weapons in the game. He uses a heavier top-spin than Roddick: the revolutions he puts on the ball have been calculated as being on a par with, if not slightly higher than, those imparted by Nadal, whose forehand has helped him to 14 grand slam titles.