LONDON — American Jack Sock's first grand slam as a seeded player came to a premature end when he lost 6-3 3-6 6-3 6-3 to big-serving Australian Samuel Groth at Wimbledon on Tuesday.
The 22-year-old, tipped as the man to revive American men's tennis after some fallow years by none other than former great John McEnroe, was hindered by an injury in his first-round match and fizzled out after leveling.
Only seven American men were in the main draw, the fewest since 1947 when five started, and, of those, four have survived to the second round -- 17th seed John Isner, Sam Querrey, who will face seven-times champion Roger Federer, 52nd ranked Steve Johnson and wildcard Denis Kudla.