Californian Jenson Brooksby, 20, climbing the ladder toward the elite in tennis

In 2020, Jenson Brooksby did not play one competitive tennis match. A left big toe injury and right arm injury in 2019 plus the COVID-19 pandemic put a temporary halt to his career.

So it comes as rather a surprise that the 20-year-old from Sacramento, California, has become a player to watch at this year’s U.S. Open, which begins Aug. 30. His 2021 season has been in many ways remarkable, even if he doesn’t look at it this way.

Brooksby earned a wild card in the Open on the strength of three Challenger Tour victories early in the season, back when he was ranked in the low 300s, then impressive showings at ATP events in Newport, Rhode Island, and Washington, D.C.

At Newport, Brooksby made it all the way to the final, where he lost to veteran Kevin Anderson. He defeated Anderson in the first round at D.C., and subsequently posted wins over Frances Tiafoe, Felix Auger-Aliassime (ranked 15th at the time) and John Millman before losing to Jannik Sinner in the semifinals.

Grand Slam champion Andy Murray watched Brooksby play in Washington and took to social media to say: "Jenson Brooksby is the sort of player I love to watch . . . lots of variety . . . high tennis IQ . . . great in defence."

Tiafoe described Brooksby’s game after his loss. "[He] is super unorthodox," Tiafoe said. "Obviously everything he does is pretty strange. [He] puts you in awkward positions, makes you play an extra ball, has great anticipation of the ball. [He] is really solid, makes you play a lot."

Which is sort of how Brooksby, who is a solid 6-4 and 185, describes his game.

"We train to not have any weaknesses, any holes," said Brooksby, who used 2020 to develop himself both physically and mentally. "Work on point construction. Pretty simple, nothing stands out too much. We try to put opponents in their weaker spots. Not any big weapons."

Tennis commentator Brad Gilbert, who has been following Brooksby’s progress for four years, imagines what will happen when Brooksby develops his serve as a big weapon.

"He’s clever in winning matches," Gilbert said. "He’s a little bit like an Andy Murray. He’s a great counterpuncher. He moves unbelievably well for 6-4. Surprising for his size, the worst part of his game is his serve. When he develops his serve I think his game can really blossom. If he can all of a sudden start serving 135 [mph] , drop 15-20 aces, then we re-evaluate his potential."

Brooksby won the 2018 Boys 18 Nationals, earning a spot in the Open. He defeated former top 10 player Tomas Berdych in the first round. He made it through three qualifying matches and won his first-rounder in 2019 Open before injuring his right arm.

"In 2018 and 2019 I knew my level was there and I could compete with the top players," Brooksby said, "[and] 2020 really didn’t change that. The biggest things from those years was that I was struggling physically and getting hurt quite a bit, I wasn’t that strong. This being my first full year [as a pro] I am excited that I’ve shown so far what I can do consistently."