By STEVEN WINE, AP
Posted: 3:15 am
June 30, 2008
WIMBLEDON - Rafael Nadal has helped his nation cure its longtime aversion to lawn tennis, and he'll be one of three Spanish men playing today in the fourth round at Wimbledon.
After yesterday's day off, Switzerland, France, Russia and Croatia have two players apiece among the final 16. Britain, which last won the men's singles title in 1936, advanced one man to the second week, as did Australia, Germany, Serbia and even the island of Cyprus.
And the United States? None.
The nation that produced Andre Agassi, Don Budge, Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Pete Sampras and Bill Tilden finds itself in a collective slump. And there's no sign of a turnaround.
"We've been struggling for a long time, and it has just gotten worse," said Gene Mayer, a former top-five player who coaches privately in New York. "We just are producing no players."
For the first time since 1926, only one U.S. male - No. 102-ranked Bobby Reynolds - reached the third round at Wimbledon. He lost Friday.
The problem isn't grass. At last year's French Open, American men went 0-9, their worst showing on the Roland Garros clay in at least 40 years. The last U.S. male to win a major title was Andy Roddick at the U.S. Open in 2003.
The drought is less noticeable on the women's side only because of the Williams sisters, who have combined for 14 major titles. They and Bethanie Mattek were the lone Americans to survive the first week at Wimbledon.
American men went 5-12. Eight lost in the first round, including Olympians Sam Querrey and Robby Ginepri. Roddick and James Blake lost in the second round.
Tennis finds itself in a vicious cycle. With fewer Americans doing well, the sport becomes less popular in the U.S. and participation drops. That means fewer youngsters take up the game, which reduces the pool of potential future champions.
Three-time Grand Slam champion Lindsay Davenport has noticed the transformation.
"It has kind of slipped in the rankings of sports watched on TV and overall popularity in the public," Davenport said. "I don't know exactly what the answers are to get it to be more popular, but worldwide it's definitely a bigger hit than in the United States."
