Paris – 30 years have passed since three American men arrived at week 2 at the France Open. At that time, they were Andre Agassi, Michael Chang and Jim Courier, each of whom won the tournament at some point.
This round, the trio is Tommy Paul, Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe, all scheduled to be in court on Sunday in fourth round in Roland-Garros.
“Yes, about time,” Jessica Pegula joked, who advanced on Saturday to give the United States at least three women in the 16th round. “It is exciting to see it. Obviously you want to see your countrymen who work well on the other side, and I always stay up to date.
It will not be easy, of course, perhaps especially for the 13th Shelton, the left -hander who faces the defending champion Carlos Alcaraz of Spain for a position in the quarterfinals. No. 12 Paul faces No. 25 Alexei Popyrin of Australia; No. 15 Tiafoe meets Daniel Altmaier of Germany.
Not from Courier and Pete Sampras in 1996 have reached multiple Americans to the quarterfinals in Paris.
Historically, the slowest red clay used in the France Open has not been particularly kind to the men of the United States. Some of that is simply that they tend to grow playing mainly on hard courts, which reward a great success style, so they are not so accustomed to patience and the foot game required in the red earth.
“I really think everyone can play on this surface,” Paul said. “I remember it’s just tennis.”
But for years, Paul said, he was not excited to participate in the France Open. And that comes from someone who won the junior title of the event when he was a teenager in 2015.
“Now I come here and I see it as an opportunity,” said Paul, 28, who grew up in North Carolina. “I think all Americans do it.”
Agassi, in 1999, was the last American man to win the trophy at the France Open, and La Nación has not had a male finalist since then. Before that, it was Couer in 1991 and 1992. Before that, it was Chang in 1989. And before that, you must return to Tony Trabert in 1954 and 1955.
American Women has been much more successful: 15 single titles in the open era, including seven for Chris Evert and three for Serena Williams, in addition to 13 finalist presenters, more recently for Coco Gound in 2022.
“He is super critical not to worry about what he was and just worry about what he is,” said Tiafoe, a 27-year-old Maryland who twice did the semifinals in the Open of the Hard race of the US, but began his career in Roland-Garros to go 0-6. “We are currently at the France Open, and we only try to be elite. This is where it counts. So the boys believe it.”
Unlike New York, where Tiafoe is the center of attention and a favorite of fans, a scene that loves: “There is so much anticipation; there is so much energy,” said Paris, presents “a different environment” and “more than a kind of discreet things.”
So far, so good.
It was not likely that there is anything discreet about Shelton vs. Alcaraz in the main stadium, Court Philippe-Bratrier. They are among the most striking and entertaining athletes in male tennis at this time.
Alcaraz is sown No. 2. At 22, the same age as Shelton, who won an NCAA title for the University of Florida, Alcaraz already has four Grand Slam titles, with at least one in the clay in the open of France, the grass in Wimbledon and the hard courts in the US Open.
“That is a great opportunity, a pretty great experience, which not many people get or see in their life,” said Shelton, a semifinalist at the US Open in 2023 and the Australian Open in January, but 2-2 in Roland-Garros before this year. “For me, I will definitely enjoy it and come out and see what I can do, because I am starting to earn some speed, win a little traction, on this surface and start seeing some of my best tennis. I like to think about myself as dangerous every time I get to that place.”
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Howard Fendrich has been the AP tennis writer since 2002. He finds his stories here: https://apnews.com/author/howard-fendrich. More AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tenis
