A native of Sacramento, Jenson Brooksby is seeking to join a tennis association

Jenson Brooksby doesn’t have the style that many associate with modern American tennis.

He is not known for a large powerful palm or feed bomb. He is not the biggest player on the ATP Tour or the most athletic. But the 21-year-old Sacramento has a chance to become one of the best in the world after the start of his promising career in 2021.

“He can go a long way,” ESPN tennis analyst Brad Gilbert recently told The Beelle. “He can go into the top five for sure. And maybe even higher. I think he has great potential.”

Gilbert’s lofty praise contained a warning: He must develop his supply into a threatening weapon. That’s the only question in Gilbert’s mind about how good Brooksby could be.

After all, Brooksby was selected as ATP’s newcomer of the year in 2021. His rise was only significant when it rose from the top 300 in the world at FedEx ATP Rankings at the end of 56 years. He is the third American to win the award since 2000. He joined Taylor Fritz in 2016 and former US Open winner Andy Roddick, who won it in 2001.

Americans have struggled in tennis rankings for more than a decade. Taylor Fritz was the highest-ranked American in 22nd place last week.

“It’s available. But it (service) is the No. 1 priority,” Gilbert said. “And if he develops it, he’s going to do great things.”

In serving and style

Brooksby’s camp may not agree with Gilbert’s assessment, as his feed develops as he continues to grow and work on his body. They want to focus on what’s got Brooksby to this point.

How can a player without a feed like Roddick, Pete Sampras or Roger Federer join the elite? They can follow Brooksby’s model, cultivated by his coach, Sacramenton’s Joe Gilbert (not affiliated with Brad), who runs the JGM Tennis Academy at Arden Arcade.

Joe Gilbert has worked with Brooksby for 14 years, since he was 7 years old. He’s focused on refining Brooksby’s versatile game and watching him evolve from a lousy, undersized youngster to an explosive, 6-footed newcomer to the ATP tour. .

Gilbert has emphasized minimizing weaknesses and a sensible game plan for opponents. Brooksby is known for his intangible assets such as competitiveness and discipline, his playfulness and the way he executes his game plans.

“We went more with goals, we went more with patterns, we went more consistently, we went more to switch between different rounds and different angles,” Gilbert said.

These were qualities that stood out from Gilbert when Brooksby was young, and Gilbert’s role in Brooksby’s commitment to his tennis career at age 12 was to maximize them. It seems to work.

“If he had played the same style as the Americans are coming out, he wouldn’t have been as successful as he is,” Gilbert said. “He wasn’t big enough, he wasn’t strong enough, he wasn’t physical enough, he had a big pass and a big palm, hit really hard and played really fast.

“Those were not his qualities when he was younger. And if I had asked him to do that, it would have slowed his growth, damaged his self-confidence, and I don’t think we would be where we are today.

Promising American tennis star

Brooksby will embark on a 2022 tour at the top of the list of promising Americans.

He hit the start of the season last week when he and Gilbert received a positive COVID-19 test less than a week before the Australian Open, which is scheduled to begin on January 17th.

Brooksby and Gilbert did not experience severe symptoms. But because of the time required for quarantine, a negative test and a 17-hour flight to Australia, Brooksby decided to withdraw from the tournament a week earlier to focus on training for the Dallas Open in February.

“Getting caught up in a slam isn’t easy; there are many who have suffered worse, so I cannot complain! ” Brooksby wrote on Instagram. “I look forward to getting my Aussie Open debut next year!”

Brooksby debuted at the US Open last September. He made it to the fourth round, where he faced one of the best players in history, world number one Novak Djokovic.

The match took place under the lights of Arthur Ashe Stadium midfield, giving Brooksby a first taste of the biggest stage in the sport in his home country.

Part of what got Brooksby to that point is a mature and professional approach, which isn’t always common to athletes his age. He turned 21 the following month. The stage couldn’t get much bigger, but he didn’t approach it any differently than in the second match.

“Because I practiced and how our culture is, and our way of thinking in general, I think I was able to focus on that match and try to win that match like everyone else,” Brooksby said.

“But at the same time, I appreciated being able to test my body and skills and everything in such a place. I really appreciated it. You can learn a lot and have different experiences from all these different stages. “

One point in particular was the example of Brooksby’s game. After a long rally, he blocked Djokovic’s passing shot near the net, but made an unimportant mistake that caused an American crowd to roar.

After the first installment, Brooksby conceded to Djokovic in four installments. His body was spent in the harsh conditions of his first ATP tour to the point that his condition was out of season.

Still, Brooksby caught Djokovic’s attention, which finished second in the tournament.

“He’s young. He’s 20 years old. He has a lot of time,” Djokovic told reporters after the match. “I think we’ll see him a lot in the future.” Now, of course, a lot of things have to go together, but he has a bit of an unusual game, he does a lot with emotion. But he is intelligent. He knows how to win points. “

Unusual tennis style

Brooksby’s unusual game may not be the most aesthetically pleasing. He doesn’t seem to be on his feet, and his shape doesn’t show up in the tennis practice guide. But that doesn’t make his style any less effective.

Brad Gilbert, an analyst at ESPN, pointed out Brooksby’s ability to anticipate and react to his opponents ’shots. It’s a part of his game that stands out from the crowd, although it’s hard for most fans watching TV to spot. Clearly, they have been his best qualities throughout his tennis life.

“It doesn’t matter what level he plays at,” Gilbert said. – He has a great ability to defend. Counterattack, he attacks from harder positions than from stationary positions. Andy Murray is like that. That’s the genius of his game.

“So he has a good ability to vary his pace and surprise you,” Gilbert continued. – But his ability to defend, understanding the field and understanding the strengths of his opponents are excellent. That’s why he beats the juniors. That’s why he won in the challengers quickly and that’s why he wins at the professional level. He understands his opponents. “

There’s also daily work going on to improve Brooksby’s body and game.

Joe Gilbert, Brooksby’s coach, said Brooksby arrives at the tennis academy every day at 7 or 8 when he’s in town when he was on vacation. From there, he works on his fitness for one to two hours, works an hour on the field, goes back to the gym to recover, eats lunch, and then returns to the field for about two hours in the afternoon to sparring. with other players. He then cools down, stretches, works out for another two hours at the gym, does recovery routines, and heads home for dinner.

“It’s just a physical struggle to keep him healthy,” Gilbert said. “And that was one of our biggest problems all year.”

If he can stay healthy and perhaps develop a stronger pass, Brooksby could win far more than a newcomer of the year. And if he could ever win a Grand Slam, maybe he’ll change what we know about American tennis.