Brandon Nakashima is a clean, compact ball-striker whose grass results rise and fall on how many tight sets he can win. He finished the 2026 season 24th in the GTC Grass Rankings with a GTC Grass Rating of 100, up from 98, after his best grass week at Queen’s Club.
Grass at a glance
- GTC Grass Rating: 100, 24th in the men’s rankings (27th before the season)
- Pillars: Lawn Form 54, Arsenal 56, Wimbledon 38, Nerve 42
- Nationality: United States
- Best Wimbledon result: Fourth round (2022)
- Grass titles: None yet
- Plays: Right-handed, two-handed backhand
- College: University of Virginia (one season)
How Brandon plays on grass
Nakashima’s game is built on timing rather than power. He takes the ball early off both wings, hits flat and keeps his swings short, which suits the low bounce of grass and makes him a reliable returner. When he is serving well and holding comfortably, he can rush higher-ranked players, as he did against Alex de Minaur at Queen’s in 2026.
What he lacks is a single shot that wins free points under pressure. His Arsenal score of 56 reflects a serve that is sound but not heavy and a limited use of the slice and the net. That leaves him playing a lot of tie-breaks, and the Nerve score of 42 records how often those have gone against him. His 2026 Wimbledon defeat had four tie-breaks and he won only one.
Grass record
Nakashima made his Grand Slam main-draw debut at Wimbledon in 2021 as a qualifier, losing to Taylor Fritz. His best run came in 2022, when he reached the fourth round and took Nick Kyrgios, the eventual runner-up, to five sets. After a first-round loss in 2023 he reached the third round in 2024, beating 18th seed Sebastián Báez and Jordan Thompson, and again in 2025. He played one season of college tennis at Virginia before turning professional, and he has no grass titles or finals.
The 2026 grass season
Queen’s Club produced the best grass week of his career. He reached the quarter-finals without dropping a set and then beat top seed de Minaur 7-5, 6-3, his third career win over a top-10 player. In the semi-final he won the first set on a tie-break against Francisco Cerúndolo but lost 7-6(5), 3-6, 4-6, and Cerúndolo went on to take the title. His rating rose from 98 to 100.
At Wimbledon, seeded 28th, he won his opening match before meeting Jan-Lennard Struff in the second round. The match was halted by darkness at two sets all and finished the next day, with Struff winning 4-6, 7-6(6), 7-6(5), 6-7(6), 7-6(7). A deciding tie-break settled it 10-7. The rating held at 100.
Looking ahead to 2027
Nakashima’s 2027 grass season should again run through Queen’s, where his 2026 semi-final gives him a result to defend, before Wimbledon. The work is in the margins: a few more free points on serve and a better record in tie-breaks would convert close losses into wins and lift both the Arsenal and Nerve pillars. A Wimbledon pillar of 38 is the weakest part of his profile, and a return to the second week, matching his 2022 run, is the realistic target.
