美国国家公共电台 NPR--Wimbledon: Men on the U.S. team are having their best start in decades

Wimbledon: Men on the U.S. team are having their best start in decades

Transcript¹

American men are making their mark on Wimbledon. NPR's Leila Fadel talks to Jon Wertheim, senior writer for Sports Illustrated², about a fresh wave of young American talent making strides at Wimbledon.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

American men are making their mark on Wimbledon. Four of them made it to the fourth round of the tennis tournament this holiday weekend, the most at this Grand Slam since 1999. Frances Tiafoe and Tommy Paul were defeated, but Brandon Nakashima and Taylor Fritz are still looking to clinch³ a spot in the quarterfinals this morning.

So is this the start of a new era of American tennis? Let's ask Jon Wertheim. He's a senior writer for Sports Illustrated, and he's with us on Skype this morning. Good morning, Jon.

JON WERTHEIM: Hi, Leila. Happy Fourth.

FADEL: Happy Fourth. So tell us more about the American men making strides this year.

WERTHEIM: Well, it's - there's definitely quantity. And now the question is, is there, you know, is there going to be quality to match? Because there were six American seeds, which is a high since the '90s. As you mentioned, there are two players remaining. But it's sort of unclear if these are really champions or if these are just really good players. But it's a big opportunity for Taylor Fritz in particular, who's 25 years old. He's from Southern California. He's really sort of a quality player. And the question is, can he just make that one more leap and win a major because on the American men's side, we are coming up on almost 20 years since an American male won a major tournament.

FADEL: Do they have a shot at the title?

WERTHEIM: I think this year, especially when it seems so wide open, I mean, the favorites are obviously Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal, who between them have won 42 majors. They are certainly the two favorites. But it has been such a strange, arhythmic tournament. It's played on grass, which is always sort of a mercurial⁴ surface. Yeah, they have a chance, Taylor Fritz in particular. You mentioned Brandon Nakashima, who plays Nick Kyrgios in a couple hours today, which will be a real test for him. But it's been a very strange event. And so yeah, why not? We could use an upset.

FADEL: So it's a different story for American women this year. American women stars Serena Williams, Coco Gauff made early exits at Wimbledon. So what's going on with the women this year?

WERTHEIM: It's funny because I think most people would've thought that the women would have a much better chance, but as it stands now, the best bet is Amanda Anisimova. And, you know, tennis is a funny sport. And on grass, where anything can happen, we've seen a lot of variance⁵ and a lot of upsets. There's only one player left in the women's draw who's ever won a major of any kind. So it's been exciting from an upset perspective, not from a predictability perspective.

FADEL: Right. What's driving the success of the American men and American tennis stars this year?

WERTHEIM: It's a good question. I think some of this is just a question of players maturing into their games. There's a nice core group of players who had great junior success, you know, six, seven years ago. And especially the way tennis is played now, also with this logjam at the top where you've had these three towering, you know, these three all-time great players in Nadal, Federer and Novak Djokovic, it's sort of left little oxygen for everyone else. And now these guys who had great juniors careers five, six years ago, they're in their mid-20s. They're a little bit more developed physically⁶. They've gotten used to sort of the rigors⁷ and the workplace. And they're really sort of coming into form in their mid-20s.

FADEL: Could we see a sort of U.S. tennis dynasty over the next few years?

WERTHEIM: Oh, I think there are a lot of people that would love to see that happen. I'm not sure. I mean, tennis has just become so global. I just don't think that's sort of the nature of the sport anymore where one country dominates just because it's become such a global workforce⁸.

FADEL: That's Jon Wertheim, a senior writer for Sports Illustrated. Thank you so much for joining us on this holiday weekend.

WERTHEIM: Thank you. Take care.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 illustrated   

adj. 有插图的，列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• His lecture was illustrated with slides taken during the expedition. 他在讲演中使用了探险时拍摄到的幻灯片。
• The manufacturing Methods: Will be illustrated in the next chapter. 制作方法将在下一章说明。

3 clinch   

v.敲弯，钉牢；确定；扭住对方 [参]clench

参考例句：

• Clinch the boards together.用钉子把木板钉牢在一起。
• We don't accept us dollars,please Swiss francs to clinch a deal business.我方不收美元，请最好用瑞士法郎来成交生意。

4 mercurial   

adj.善变的，活泼的

参考例句：

• He was of a mercurial temperament and therefore unpredictable.他是个反复无常的人，因此对他的行为无法预言。
• Our desires and aversions are mercurial rulers.我们的欲望与嫌恶是变化无常的统治者。

5 variance   

n.矛盾，不同

参考例句：

• The question of woman suffrage sets them at variance. 妇女参政的问题使他们发生争执。
• It is unnatural for brothers to be at variance. 兄弟之间不睦是不近人情的。

6 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

7 rigors   

严格( rigor的名词复数 )； 严酷； 严密； （由惊吓或中毒等导致的身体）僵直

参考例句：

• The rigors of that lonely land need no further description. 生活在那个穷乡僻壤的困苦是无庸赘言的。
• You aren't ready for the rigors of industry. 你不适合干工业的艰苦工作了。

8 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。