The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
US tennis‘needs to regroup’
EIGHT-TIME grand slam championA ndre A gassi believes A merican men’s tennis has to “regroup at grassroots level” if it ever wants to boast a world No 1 again.
The United States take on Great Britain in the Davis Cup in Glasgow this weekend, hoping to avenge last year’s 3-1 defeat in San Diego.
World No 5 A ndy Murray will lead the charge for Britain and goes into the firstround World Group tie as the standout singles player, with A merica’s John Isner and Donald Young ranked only 20th and 47th respectively.
It is a far cry from the days of A gassi, who lifted the Davis Cup in 1990, 1992 and 1995 alongside the likes of seven-time Wimbledon champion Pete Sampras and four-time major winner Jim Courier.
The last time A merica produced a male grand slam winner was 2003, when A gassi won the A ustralian Open and A ndy Roddick triumphed in Flushing Meadows.
“Being the next A ndy Roddick or the nextA ndreA gassi will still leave you shy of winning tournaments these days. That’s the truth,” A gassi told Press A ssociation Sport.
“Will we ever have a No 1 player again? That’s achievable, of course it is, but the four guys at the top now — Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and A ndy Murray — they have redefined what this sport is all about over the last 10 years.
“You need something unique these days to make inroads, especially growing up in a country that doesn’t have red clay courts.
“I don’t know where A ndy spent his childhood playing (he spent time in Spain as a teenager) but he plays the game like he wasn’t just playing indoors.
“Isner, for example, is a monster, he’s 6ft 10in-plus with a huge game, so we have to regroup at a grassroots level.”
Despite a shock defeat to 18-year-old Borna Coric in Dubai, Murray will be expected to win both his singles matches in Glasgow.
That means the tie could depend on the doubles rubber, where A ndy and Jamie Murray will face A merican twins Bob and Mike Bryan.