{"id":291035,"date":"2025-10-10T04:26:13","date_gmt":"2025-10-10T04:26:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/291035\/"},"modified":"2025-10-10T04:26:13","modified_gmt":"2025-10-10T04:26:13","slug":"american-tennis-is-claimed-to-have-a-problem-which-hurt-john-isner-in-his-career-its-wrong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/291035\/","title":{"rendered":"American tennis is claimed to have a problem which hurt John Isner in his career, ‘it’s wrong’"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"\/ Follow us on Google Discover <\/a> <\/p>\n

American tennis is in a strong place right now, but there is still work to be done..<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Two American men, Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton<\/a>, are currently ranked inside the world\u2019s top ten.<\/p>\n

Both players reached the semifinals of Grand Slams this year and won titles on the ATP Tour<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"BenPhoto by Julian Avram\/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images<\/p>\n

The wait for a male American Grand Slam winner goes on, however, as no man has won a major since Andy Roddick at the 2003 US Open<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Such a drought has led many to talk down on the Americans who tried and failed to win Grand Slams over the past 22 years.<\/p>\n

That mentality has now been questioned, as one top sports physiologist weighs in on the discussion.<\/p>\n

Mark Kovacs says it\u2019s \u2018wrong\u2019 to criticize American players for not winning Grand Slams<\/p>\n

Appearing as a guest on the latest episode of \u2018The Inside-In Tennis Podcast\u2019, Mark Kovacs commented on the way fans and pundits treat players who aren\u2019t winning major tournaments.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re top ten in the world, top 20 in the world, there are only ten people in the entire world better than you. You\u2019re at the top, you\u2019re at the pinnacle, there isn\u2019t much more to go,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut in our sport, if you\u2019re ten in the world, you\u2019re not that good in the scheme of the casual fan.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnfortunately, we downgrade how good they are unless they\u2019re winning Slams.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re not winning Slams, you\u2019re not good enough, and it\u2019s wrong. It\u2019s not the way we should evaluate.\u201d<\/p>\n

He proceeded to name an example of an American player who deserved more respect for his efforts during his career.<\/p>\n

\u201cJohn Isner<\/a> had a phenomenal record, ten years, top 20 in the world, was top ten for four or five years, an unbelievable career,\u201d said Kovacs.<\/p>\n

\"JohnPhoto by Al Bello\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u201cBut he doesn\u2019t get talked about on the same level as any of the greats. He shouldn\u2019t, because he doesn\u2019t have 20 Grand Slams, but he was one heck of a tennis player.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny junior coming up would probably check that box if they could finish their career with a John Isner career.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kovacs believes top players in American tennis aren\u2019t getting enough recognition.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe problem is, especially in the US, if you\u2019re not winning Slams, you\u2019re not being recognized,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t hear about them on ESPN, you don\u2019t hear about them as being one of the best athletes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kovacs described Isner as \u2018one heck of a tennis player\u2019, but did the big-serving American ever come close to winning a Grand Slam?<\/p>\n

John Isner\u2019s Grand Slam record<\/p>\n

Competing in 59 Grand Slam tournaments, Isner reached two quarterfinals and one semifinal.<\/p>\n\nGrand Slam<\/strong><\/td>\nBest performance<\/strong><\/td>\nWin\/Loss record<\/strong><\/td>\nWin %<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nAustralian Open<\/td>\n4R \u2013 2010, 2016<\/td>\n15-14<\/td>\n52%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nFrench Open<\/td>\n4R \u2013 2014, 2016, 2018<\/td>\n22-14<\/td>\n61%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nWimbledon<\/td>\nSF \u2013 2018<\/td>\n18-14<\/td>\n56%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nUS Open<\/td>\nQF \u2013 2011, 2018<\/td>\n32-16<\/td>\n67%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

John Isner\u2019s Grand Slam record<\/p>\n

Isner came closest to Grand Slam glory at Wimbledon<\/a> seven years ago, when he reached the last four.<\/p>\n

Travelling to London as the number-nine seed, Isner battled his way through to a maiden major semifinal.<\/p>\n