SEPT 25 - 27, 2026 | LONDON
California was once the epicenter of American tennis.
International Tennis Hall of Famer Maurice McLoughlin was known as the California Comet.
Billie Jean King first picked up a racquet in her hometown of Long Beach. Pancho Gonzalez fell in love with the game on the public courts of Exposition Park in L.A. Venus and Serena Williams came straight out of Compton. Don Budge, Helen Wills, Jack Kramer, Alice Marble, Rosie Casals, Tracy Austin, Pete Sampras, Little Bill Johnston, Lindsay Davenport, Brad Gilbert? Yeah, they all came of age in the Golden State, too.
But as state-hosted tournaments began to evaporate (storied events in Los Angeles, San Jose, Stanford, Carlsbad and elsewhere disappeared) amidst the globalization of the sport, the California talent pipeline seemed to slow, too.
But there’s been a resurgence of late. Just check the Team World roster at Laver Cup 2026. Three of Captain Andre Agassi’s players hail from Southern California alone: Taylor Fritz, Brandon Nakashima and Learner Tien.
“I think growing up, everyone always kind of knew Southern California and maybe Florida were probably the two best tennis communities, at least in my generation,” said Fritz, 28, who hails from the San Diego suburb of Rancho Santa Fe.
“Brandon and I, we’re not just from the same state, but the same city. I knew Learner, as well, coming up in California. I’ve trained with Learner since he was 15 years old, so it’s cool to be on the same team. We’ve got Alex Michelsen and Zachary Svajda, too. There’s a lot of guys coming out of SoCal now, and it makes sense.” Taylor Fritz
The 25-year-old Nakashima was born in San Diego, the same city in which he captured his first tour-level title.
“It’s amazing to see. I’ve always felt that Southern California has a bunch of very high-level junior players coming up and the competition level is always really high,” he said. “It’s really nice to see all three of us representing that part of the United States. I always enjoy going back there.”
“Taylor was always a little bit older than me, so in the juniors, we didn’t really play or practice that much. Learner is a lot younger than me,” he added. “But we see each other on the tour all the all the time.”
Tien, whose parents, Khuong and Huyen, came to the U.S. as refugees in the 1970s in the wake of the Vietnam War, was introduced to tennis on the community courts of Irvine.
“I always see the names of guys, formerly and presently, that come from California,” said Tien, 20. “It’s always cool to see and to be a part of it. They’re familiar faces that I practice with and see a lot during the year. It’s really cool that we’re all here together. I always knew about Taylor and Brandon just living in California, hearing about them a lot.”
The world No. 10 Fritz is playing in his sixth Laver Cup, and was part of all three Team World wins (2022-23, 2025), including in London four years ago. Last year in San Francisco, he beat top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz for the biggest win of his career, and No. 3 Alexander Zverev in the 12th and deciding match, becoming the first American man to earn two Top-3 wins in one event since Andy Roddick in 2008 (Dubai).
Both Nakashima and Tien will be making their Laver Cup debuts at The O2.
“It’s a real honor to play this event,” said Nakashima, whose hot summer included an ATP Masters 1000 semi and final in Cincinnati and Montreal. “All the top players in the world have played it and are here also this year, so it’s great to be part of the group. I’m just super excited about that.”
