It has been a long time since an American man won a Grand Slam. With the Wimbledon draws out, the last American Major champion, Andy Roddick, was in analysis mode on his podcast. The former Wimbledon runner-up wore his USA hat while discussing the draw and penciled in three of his countrymen who could for a deep run at SW19.

“There’s a very good chance of an American in the final”, Roddick sounded bullish on America’s Wimbledon chance on the latest episode of the Served Podcast. “Ben’s playing great, Taylor Fritz is a top-five grass-court player in the world. Francis could make a run here. Like we’ve three, if they’re not favorites, I think we have three of the top eight favorites at Wimbledon”. The optimism is not misguided, as the top American players have been in top form, winning grass-court titles ahead of Wimbledon.

Ben Shelton had a terrific grass-court result at Stuttgart, winning his maiden grass-court title against Taylor Fritz, who also reached the final in Halle, where he lost to another fellow countryman, Frances Tiafoe. While Tiafoe’s record at Wimbledon is iffy, as the grass-court Major is the only Slam where the former World No. 10 has never reached the quarterfinals, the likes of Shelton and Fritz have tasted success at SW19. Shelton reached the quarterfinals last year and lost to Jannik Sinner, while Fritz reached the semifinals and lost to Carlos Alcaraz.

However, one major threat to a possible American dominance at Wimbledon is the draw, which has been favorable to Shelton and Tiafoe but has given Fritz a nightmarish first-round matchup against Jack Draper. The left-handed Brit will have the whole crowd behind him and his new coach, Andy Murray, in his box.

What’s more worrying for Fritz is that he withdrew from his last event in Eastbourne, whereas Draper won a few matches at the same event, getting an ideal preparation for his home Slam. But should Fritz win the first round, he might very well reach the Shelton showdown in the semifinals, guaranteeing one American player in the final.

Barring the trio of Fritz, Shelton, and Tiafoe, players like Tommy Paul and Ethan Quinn have also been in good grass-court form, with Paul reaching the final of the HSBC Championships and Quinn reaching the final at Mallorca, where he is slated to play Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.

The 2003 US Open triumph remains the last Major success for American men. But Wimbledon, with its faster surfaces, faster points, and serve-dominated tennis, is tailor-made for American players whose generic style matches the surface requirements.

It has seen some great champions, including Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Jimmy Connors, and John McEnroe, lift the trophy several times. Roddick was the last American man to reach the Wimbledon final back in 2009, with the former World No.1 also reaching the SW19 final in 2004 and 2005, only to be thwarted each time by Roger Federer.

Of the current American men, Fritz is the only one to play a Major final at the US Open in 2024 and has had decent success at Wimbledon, while Shelton has consistently reached the latter stages of Slams over the last few years. With Alcaraz not at Wimbledon this time and Djokovic on his last legs, Roddick’s expectations for the American men are not unwarranted, especially given their current form.