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Jack Sock: Can He Rescue His Nightmare Season?

By Toby Oliver

KEY BISCAYNE, FL - MARCH 26: Jack Sock of the United States walks off after court after his three set defeat against Borna Coric of Croatia in their third round match during the Miami Open Presented by Itau at Crandon Park Tennis Center on March 26, 2018 in Key Biscayne, Florida. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
KEY BISCAYNE, FL - MARCH 26: Jack Sock of the United States walks off after court after his three set defeat against Borna Coric of Croatia in their third round match during the Miami Open Presented by Itau at Crandon Park Tennis Center on March 26, 2018 in Key Biscayne, Florida. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images) /
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Following another first round exit for Jack Sock this week, can he turn his singles form around in time for the US Open?

Rewind to November 2017 and Jack Sock was having the best month of his career, winning the Paris Masters event and sneaking into the qualification for the Nitto ATP Finals in London. This resulted in him achieving a career-high ranking of eight.

Many thought that this would help him to realise his potential as America’s next great player. The 2018 ATP World Tour, however, has been a disaster.

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Since the start of the year, Sock has won a total of five matches in singles on the ATP World Tour.  This is a terrible return given the immense serve and forehand he possesses. His latest defeat to South Korea’s Hyeon Chung at Cincinnati was his eighth consecutive loss. He may be at risk of a huge ranking drop if he doesn’t start winning.

In contrast to his singles season, Sock has had success on the doubles tour this year, even winning a Grand Slam at Wimbledon with Mike Bryan. In comparison with winning 5 singles matches, Sock has racked up 26 doubles wins which include four titles and nearly double the prize money. 

Why has this been the case?

Sock’s doubles skills have never been in doubt. Throughout his career to date, he has more success in doubles – winning 12 titles to 4 in singles. He’s also had a career high-ranking of six in doubles. Perhaps he’s playing too many doubles matches this year and should focus on singles for the rest of the year.

Also. Bryan and Sock: Wimbledon Success. light

When you analyse some of the losses he’s had in singles this year, it’s difficult to imagine Sock of last year getting troubled by some of them. He should have too much pace and power for most of them. For example, he lost to world number 217 Daniel Brands in the first round of qualifying at Eastbourne in straight sets. Given this, it may not be a surprise to know that Sock has lost in the first round of all three Grand Slams so far, which makes it vital that he has some success at the US Open.

What comes next for Jack Sock?

The next few months are perhaps the most important in Sock’s career as he will have to defend points he won in Paris last November. If he doesn’t, his place at the Australian Open next year may be at risk. There are a couple of options for Sock now as he attempts to revive his singles season.

He could drop down onto the Challenger tour to improve his confidence by winning a few tournaments against lower quality opposition. Jack Sock is a confidence player, with it clearly lacking in recent months. Another option would be to keep playing the high-profile tournaments, but not entering the doubles. This would make him focus on singles and could be what he needs to get some vital wins under his belt.

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