Marcos Giron joins American men making their move on ATP Tour

WATCH: American Marcos Giron defeated countryman Tennys Sandgren in the first round of the 2022 Dallas Open.

The 28-year-old American Marcos Giron is still moving up the ranks, and wants to hit the Top 50 this season. The former UCLA college champion is currently ranked No. 70 and reached a career-high No. 57 in 2021.

He's playing in the Dallas Open this week, and says he's improved on several fronts.

"It’s a mix, I had to really believe that I could do it and I believe that I can win at this level," Giron told TENNIS.com in a phone interview from Dallas, where he has reached the quarterfinals.

"After you start winning some, you get the confidence that your game can actually translate. And of course there’s a few things in the game that I actually had to work on. I always have to improve serving, I always have to improve the return.

“There’s little nuances to the game that I had to improve that the guys would be able to expose, but I feel like I did a good job doing that, and starting to win matches I could build confidence each week."

The consistent groundstroker is coming off what was a solid year, beating Grigor Dimitrov and Diego Schwartzman, and reaching his first ATP Tour semifinal and the third round of Roland Garros.

This season, he was 0-3 until Dallas but did have a memorable experience —and lesson— when he played eventual champion Rafael Nadal at the Australian Open.

"He was able to adjust and was incredible," said Giron of the first-round encounter. "I could have played a better match absolutely, but you can't play your best every tournament. But it goes back to he’s so consistent, his shots and his decision-making is so good it’s really impressive. He’s able to manage so well."

Giron had been looking for a potentially vulnerable Nadal, with the 35-year-old having just won the title at a Melbourne warmup event and just had coronavirus, plus having been off for five months in 2021 with a foot injury.

"Maybe he’s not sharp, but it was still a good experience and really I think it is taken for granted how disciplined he is, his shots are just phenomenal," said Giron. "When you play him, it’s not just the power and the velocity that he plays with, it’s the decisions that he makes so hard to beat him. It was so tough to actually get into his service game, his serves aren’t overpowering but what he’s able to do with his decisions is impressive."

Though he's usually played a heavy schedule , he's now paring down the amount of tournaments he plays and taking advantage of having a European training base with his coach, Maxime Tabatruong.

"I’m learning to find the balance of how many tournaments I can play," said Giron. "I usually go for three-week stretches, and it’s nice because I’ve been traveling with Tabatruong, who’s based in Paris, so when I went to Europe and there was six tournaments in a row, maybe if I have a week and I do well, then I’ll take a week off and go train with him in Paris.

"So I’ve learned to find that balance and kinda keep the momentum, but of course listen [to my body] when I’m tired, and take time off. It’s a marathon not a sprint."

There is a changing of the guard: Novak won three Slams last year, but we have 12 [American] guys in the Top 100. We are excited and hungry. Marcos Giron

He next plays good friend Taylor Fritz, who is now ranked No. 19. Fritz took down Roberto Bautista Agut at the Australian Open before he fell against Stefanos Tsitsipas in five brutal sets.

"He’s improved a lot," said Giron. "Taylor almost beat [No.1-ranked] Novak Djokovic at Indian Wells, and he did beat Alexander Zverev and he reached the semis. We help each other, and we know each other well."

But while Giron, Fritz and other American men have been recording some of their best performances, the most recent to have won a Grand Slam title was Andy Roddick at the 2003 U.S. Open. The Grand Slams have been dominated by the Big Three, but Giron insists others can make a run at the big events.

"I think that Rafa, Novak and [Roger] Fed[erer] are incredible, almost impossible to beat for anyone," he said. "But there is a changing of the guard: Novak won three Slams last year, but we have 12 guys in the Top 100.

“We are excited and hungry, at the doorstep. At the Slams, we are working hard and putting it together. It is possible. Anything can happen."