Novak Djokovic is into the last-16 in Melbourne.
The Serbian legend had beaten Pedro Martinez and Francesco Maestrelli to qualify for the third round.
There, Djokovic defeated Botic van de Zandschulp in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6, to advance.
Who has been the best player at the Australian Open so far?
He’ll be joined in the fourth round by four American men: Tommy Paul, Learner Tien, Taylor Fritz, and Ben Shelton.
During his latest press conference, Djokovic was asked about the current state of American tennis.
Novak Djokovic says ‘it’s just a matter of time’ before American men win ‘big’ titles
Djokovic was asked the following question.
- “You came into the sport at the tail end of, really, still the American era of dominance in men’s tennis, and then Europe sort of became the standard bearer for that. I’m wondering, looking back historically, to what extent you feel like that shift was shaped by differences in coaching methods or player development systems or tennis culture in the United States or maybe by broader features in American culture.“
“Are you referring to what caused the shift from the men’s American dominance in tennis to non- dominance for the last 20 years or so?” replied Djokovic.
“I’m not really sure how to answer that.
“I mean, obviously I’m not, you know, familiar with the system of the USTA and how it’s rolled out across America and how the coaches are, you know, working and approaching the, I guess, systematic development of players.
“I don’t think that the USA is lacking any tournaments in any category, for that matter.
ATP Tournaments held in the US (2025)
| Tournament | Tier | Surface | Winner |
| Dallas Open | ATP 500 | Hard (Indoor) | Denis Shapovalov |
| Delray Beach Open | ATP 250 | Hard | Miomir Kecmanovic |
| Indian Wells | Masters 1000 | Hard | Jack Draper |
| Miami Open | Masters 1000 | Hard | Jakub Mensik |
| U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championships | ATP 250 | Clay | Jenson Brooksby |
| Washington Open | ATP 500 | Hard | Alex de Minaur |
| Cincinnati Open | Masters 1000 | Hard | Carlos Alcaraz |
| Winston-Salem Open | ATP 250 | Hard | Marton Fucsovics |
| US Open | Grand Slam | Hard | Carlos Alcaraz |
“I think you obviously have the US Open.
“Any country that has a Grand Slam has the biggest budget in the sport, so it’s one of the richest federations.
“I think the support was always there.”
Djokovic provided a theory as to why American men may have struggled.
“I don’t know. It could be different factors, you know,” he said.
“Could be some of the things that you mentioned with the way the game evolved, and then maybe there was a period where the American players weren’t able to adapt as well as maybe Europeans in the last couple of decades.
Were the Australian Open wrong to allow Jannik Sinner time off court when he was cramping?
“You could argue that’s one of the things.”
He does, however, expect American players to return to the top at some point.
“But, look, I think eventually, I mean, you have Ben Shelton now and some young guys. I think one of them playing now, [Ethan] Quinn, that is tall, big serve, big game. They’re all knocking on the door there. I don’t think you’re lacking players,” said Djokovic.
“It’s just maybe at the moment you don’t have someone that would take it to the next step and play for Grand Slams and be a top player of the world, but that could change very quickly, because women’s tennis is doing very well currently with American players.
American women who have won Grand Slams since 2000
- Lindsay Davenport
- Venus Williams
- Jennifer Capriati
- Serena Williams
- Sloane Stephens
- Sofia Kenin
- Coco Gauff
- Madison Keys
“I think that there is not too big a reason for concern.
“I’m sure with incredible talent, but also, the amount of coaches that are there, also international coaches that live in the States and are contributing to American players and development of the American tennis system, eventually you’re going to have big champions, I think, in the near future.
“Yeah, it could be all these things, but I think it’s not a big issue. It’s just a matter of time.”
Djokovic may think it’s ‘just a matter of time’, but American tennis fans’ patience is wearing thin.
After all, no American man has won a Grand Slam singles title in 23 years…
Who was the last American man to win a Grand Slam singles title?
The last man to win a Grand Slam singles title for the United States was Andy Roddick.
He did so at the 2003 US Open, 23 years ago.
Andy Roddick at the 2003 US Open
- 2003 US Open 1R [WIN] vs Tim Henman, 6-3, 7-6, 6-3
- 2003 US Open 2R [WIN] vs Ivan Ljubicic, 6-3, 6-7, 6-3, 7-6
- 2003 US Open 3R [WIN] vs Flavio Saretta, 6-1, 6-3, 6-3
- 2003 US Open 4R [WIN] vs Xavier Malisse, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6
- 2003 US Open QF [WIN] vs Sjeng Schalken, 6-4, 6-2, 6-3
- 2003 US Open SF [WIN] vs David Nalbandian, 6-7, 3-6, 7-6, 6-1, 6-3
- 2003 US Open F [WIN] vs Juan Carlos Ferrero, 6-3, 7-6, 6-3
Only time will tell if Fritz, Shelton, Tien, or Paul can end the drought at this year’s Australian Open.
The fourth round will begin on Sunday, January 25.
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