Americans to reach the second week of Wimbledon 2024 ft. Coco Gauff, Ben Shelton and Taylor Fritz
The 2024 Wimbledon Championships began with plenty of Americans in the draw, though only seven players remain across the men's and women's singles fields. Sofia Kenin and Sebastian Korda were among the first ones to fall as the two were ousted in the opening round itself.
World No. 5 Jessica Pegula, the second highest-ranked American woman, was stunned by Wang Xinyu in the second round. Sloane Stephens also bowed out at this stage.
Frances Tiafoe was close to securing the biggest upset of the tournament as he almost managed to beat defending champion Carlos Alcaraz. However, he lost their third-round match in five sets.
As the tournament enters its second week, here's a look at the remaining American players left in the singles draw at Wimbledon 2024:
#1 Ben Shelton
Shelton had a dismal prep in the lead-up to Wimbledon, winning only one match across three tournaments on grass. He knew he was capable of performing better, and did just that by reaching the fourth round at the All England Club for the first time.
Getting to this stage was no easy feat as Shelton needed five sets to beat all his opponents. With a fourth-round showdown with World No. 1 Jannik Sinner up next for him, he will need to raise his level even further. The Italian won their last two matches, though the American won their first encounter in Shanghai last year.
#2 Danielle Collins
Collins is set to hang up her racquet for good at the end of the season but she is ensuring that she will go out on a high. She captured the biggest title of her career at the Miami Open earlier this year, and won the Charleston Open as well.
The 30-year-old has now reached the fourth round of Wimbledon for the first time in her career. She secured straight-set wins over Clara Tauson, Dalma Galfi and Beatriz Haddad Maia to enter the second week. She will next take on 2021 French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova, and will be favored to beat the Czech as well.
#3 Taylor Fritz
After an impressive clay swing, Fritz has continued his good run of form on grass as well. He won his eighth career title at the Rothesay International in Eastbourne just before the start of Wimbledon. It was also his third title at the venue.
Fritz's winning ways rolled over to the All England Club as well, with wins over Christopher O'Connell, Arthur Rinderknech and Alejandro Tabilo. The 25-year-old has made the fourth round here for the second time, and will face World No. 4 Alexander Zverev for a spot in the quarterfinals.
#4 Madison Keys
Keys only participated in one tournament before the grasscourt Major, which was the Rothesay International. She was the defending champion there but fell to Leylah Fernandez in the semifinals.
Keys has been in good form at Wimbledon, with straight-set victories over Martina Trevisan, Wang Yafan and Marta Kostyuk to make the second week. She will square off against this year's French Open finalist Jasmine Paolini for a place in the last eight.
#5 Tommy Paul
Paul's grass swing was off to a great start as he captured the biggest title of his career at the Cinch Championships at Queen's Club, an ATP 500 event. He beat Pedro Martinez in four sets to begin his campaign at SW19, and needed five sets to down Otto Virtanen in the second round.
Paul defeated Alexander Bublik in straight sets to reach the fourth round of Wimbledon for the second time. He's currently on an eight-match winning streak, and will face Roberto Bautista Agut in the fourth round, a match he's expected to easily win.
#6 Coco Gauff
A first-round exit from last year's Wimbledon proved to be a turning point in Gauff's career. She went on a tear for the rest of the summer, which eventually culminated in a maiden Major triumph at the US Open.
Gauff has been rock-solid so far at this year's edition of the grasscourt Major. She hasn't dropped a set en route to the fourth round, and ousted Caroline Dolehide, Anca Todoni and Sonay Kartal to make it this far. She's now looking to reach the quarterfinals here for the first time but will need to get past her fellow American, Emma Navarro, to do so.
#7 Emma Navarro
Navarro's rise to the top has been overshadowed by other storylines of the season but she's about to have her moment under the sun. She reached the fourth round of a Major for the first time at last month's French Open.
Navarro has matched her best showing at a Grand Slam by reaching the fourth round at SW19 as well. She beat Wang Qiang and Naomi Osaka in straight sets, and staged a comeback to defeat Diana Shnaider in three sets to make the second week here for the first time.
With Gauff and Navarro set to clash in the fourth round, at least one American player is guaranteed to make the quarterfinals of Wimbledon. Serena Williams remains the last player from the country to reach a final here (2019), and win a title (2016) as well. Now, these seven players left in the draw will aim to end an eight-year long title drought.