Brad Gilbert hopes that an American man can win a Grand Slam in the next five years and believes the talent is there.

It has been a long time since an American man has claimed a Grand Slam singles title with Andy Roddick’s 2003 US Open triumph being the last before what threatens to become a 21-year drought.

Gilbert feels that there are American men who could win slams in the next five years but wouldn’t burden any with a prediction.

“I mean, obviously, it’s been 82 Slams since an American won a title, which was in 2003, Andy Roddick,” Gilbert said in Paris ahead of the 2024 Olympic Games.

“So we’d love to put an end to that. On the women’s side, we’ve had a lot more success. We have four American men in the top 20, but obviously we’d like to see someone win a major, and we’re hoping to have a bunch of good young players. Hopefully it will happen in the next five years.”

Gilbert wouldn’t comment on Novak Djokovic’s recent clashes with fans but said that all eyes should be on the great man’s tennis.

“I would focus on his tennis. His tennis is incredible, considering that he has only been operated on just five weeks before.

“During the whole week of training, I have seen him improve a little bit every day. Almost no player could be in this situation with the rapid change that the operation has brought about.

“That is the most surprising thing.”

Gilbert was also asked about what could be Nadal’s final comeback to tennis and said that it was the Spaniard’s perogative to decided when and how he went out.

“He will probably never reach his best level again, but I think above all else, every athlete wants to be able to retire in his own way. He wants to be in charge of the decision that maybe it’s time to stop. He’s had so many injuries in the last two years that he probably hasn’t had a period where he really felt healthy and that’s what he wants to know more than anything, before he stops, what his game is like when he’s completely healthy.”

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Gilbert believes that the best players are the ones who know how to win when they are not at their best.

“Their matches look beautiful, but all of them would tell you that probably the most important type of matches to win are at the beginning of the tournament, maybe when things weren’t going well that day and they found a way to win and then tomorrow they might look beautiful,” Gilbert said of the big three.

“That’s the subtle thing about being great: there’s probably a huge percentage of matches where they’re average, but their average is better than everyone else’s. But you still have to figure out how to succeed on those days when you don’t feel 100 per cent physically or mentally. You need an ugly day to become 100 per cent beautiful.”