If you have been following the ATP Tour this year, you may be wondering why Jack Sock hasn’t appeared on your TV screen very much these last six months.

No, he isn’t injured. He hasn’t been ill. The honest truth is that Sock just hasn’t produced the kind of tennis we expect from one of the most talented players in the world. The 25 year-old from Lincoln, Nebraska is in a major slump at the moment. his results through the first half of the year have been extremely puzzling.

Sock has entered twelve tournaments so far in 2018, and has left seven of those events without winning a single match. His overall record in singles is 5-12, and he has not won back-to-back matches yet this year.

Those are results that no one was expecting to see from the current #14 ranked player in the world back when the season started in January. Sock entered 2018 in the top-10 and as the #1 ranked American after a fantastic finish to the 2017 season. Many experts thought this could be a breakout season for Jack where he could possibly contend for Grand Slam titles.

Unfortunately, it has gone the opposite direction. “J. Sizzle” took a first round loss to Yuichi Sugita in four sets at the Australian Open. The fast surface down under usually favors the aggressive style of play that Sock brings to the court, but Sugita played well and earned the victory. This was definitely not a good start to the year, but there would be more opportunities to come.

Indian Wells and Miami are two events where “Showtime” Sock usually produces some of his best tennis. Playing on U.S. soil with the crowd support can help propel the Americans to great results (like John Isner at Miami this year).

After winning his opening-round matches at both tournaments, Sock would go on to take losses against Feliciano Lopez at Indian Wells, and Borna Coric at Miami in the round of 32. Lopez and Coric are consummate professionals, but were ranked outside of the top-30 at the time, and it just felt as though these were matches that Jack could and probably should win on home soil.

The clay court season is never usually kind to the Americans either. Sock, however, has the kind of game with his heavy serve and forehand to still be able to do damage on the dirt.

In three lead-up events to the French Open, Jack was able to capture only one match victory, and that happened to be against the ageless David Ferrer in Rome. At this point, it was obvious that Sock hadn’t found his game yet, and his struggles continued at Roland Garros.

When I first began to analyze the French Open draw, I immediately noticed Sock’s section and thought that this could be his chance to find his game and make a run at Roland Garros. Once again, we saw no signs of progress. Jack bowed out in the first round against lucky loser, Jurgen Zopp, who was ranked outside of the top-130 at the time.

So, after two Grand Slams in 2018, Sock had zero wins to his name at the majors.

Now, we’re into the grass court portion of the season, and “Showtime” just took another first-round L at Queen’s Club against Daniil Medvedev earlier this week. I’m struggling to figure out exactly why Sock is performing so uncharacteristically poor at every single event. From what I can tell, I think a lot of it has to be mental. There is no doubt that Jack is one of the most gifted athletes and talented players on tour. The mental side of the game has held him back in the past, and I think he’s at the point now where his struggles are in his head every time he steps on the court.

Jack Sock, incidentally, lost in R1 of singles yesterday in straights to #52 Daniil Medvedev. He’s now 5-12 in 2018, with only one win over a top-60 foe. After qualifying last year, Sock is #139 in the live Race to London rankings now, one spot ahead of Roberto Cid Subervi. — Ben Rothenberg (@BenRothenberg) June 19, 2018

Is he in the best possible physical shape? Is he training his tail off every week to work the kinks out? Is there something going on in his personal life that is effecting his play?

These are questions that only Jack can answer. In my opinion, the 25 year-old isn’t having fun when he’s on the court. He needs to recapture the love of the game. With Wimbledon just a couple weeks away, we haven’t seen any encouraging signs to believe Sock can regain his form at the All-England Club.

Looking on the bright side, it cannot possibly get any worse for the Nebraska native. He can only go up from here, but it needs to happen now. If Jack wants to salvage his 2018 season, he cannot continue on this path any longer.

There are still two majors left, and many other events that Sock has found success at in the past. As I am with all the American players, I’m a big fan of Jack Sock. I have more fun watching ATP tennis when he’s playing well and helping to carry the U.S. torch.

Come on Jack! Put the first half of the year out of your mind and start now with a clean slate. You have many supporters behind you that are just waiting for something to cheer about. I believe! Now is the time though. The clock is ticking in 2018. Here’s to hoping that Jack Sock can turn things around before that time expires.

Can jack Sock turn his 2018 season around? Let us know your thoughts in the comemnts below.