As we charge into the American hardcourt spring fling in California and Florida, the USA’s prospects are looking up. For the first time in recent memory, three Americans snagged titles in the same week – Serena Williams at Bangalore, Andy Roddick at Dubai and Sam Querrey at Las Vegas. A Sampras victory over Federer in the hyped exhibition at Madison Square Garden Monday night would have been the icing on the Stars and Stripes cake, but it wasn't to be. (Personally, I don’t put much stock in exos. When Sampras led 5-2 in the third set and then got broken to even the match, I cynically told my editor at USA Today that Federer would win in a tiebreaker, which is exactly what happened. Smells fixed to me.)

How rare was all the hardware for the U.S. men? Querrey's win Sunday against qualifier Kevin Anderson of South Africa and Roddick's defeat Feliciano Lopez in Dubai on Saturday marked the first time two Americans won titles at ATP events in the same week since August 1996 when Sampras won Indianapolis and Alex O’Brien won New Haven, according to the ATP.

Roddick’s second title in three weeks following his victory in San Jose was particularly impressive. Considering the field in Dubai – 8 of the top 10 – and that he beat both Nadal and Djokovic in straight sets, it was his biggest win since the Cincy Masters in ’06 and ranks among his best weeks since capturing his only major at the ’03 U.S. Open.

Besides parting ways with mentor Jimmy Connors, which may or may not have contributed to his free-swinging ways, the reason he’s playing so well is obvious: He’s punishing people with his serve. Roddick didn’t drop serve the entire Dubai tournament and he is currently leading the men's tour in aces (252), service games won (95%) and break points saved (82%). He also seems to be sticking his forehand a little more. There are still holes in his game, but if the 25-year-old American serves big and plays more aggressively with his forehand, he could start to enter the Slam-worthy conversation again.

Querrey, too, is hitting his massive 6'6" stride. The 20-year-old Californian recorded good wins over Nicolas Kiefer in the second round and Guillermo Canas in the quarterfinals in capturing his first ATP title and pushing his ranking to No. 48, one off his career high from last summer. It’s nice to see Serena back in the winner’s circle as well, though the field in Bangalore wasn’t exactly a minefield. Still, she got by sister Venus in the semifinals, so maybe that’s the boost she needs to regain her confidence, which I honestly think has been lagging in recent months even if her underlying self-belief never vanishes.

Speaking of losses, has Venus ever suffered worse consecutive defeats than her two tournaments prior to Bangalore? The four-time Wimbledon champ fell to 45^th-ranked Dominika Cibulkova in the second round at Doha and then to 17-year-old qualifier Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic at Memphis. Ouch.

While the singles players from the USA are peaking, the nation's most formidable doubles duo is not. The Bryan brothers are struggling. Last year they won a career best 11 titles and ran away with the No. 1 ranking, but they enter the Pacific Life Open at Indian Wells stunningly without a victory in 2008. They have reached four finals (Sydney, San Jose, Las Vegas, Delray Beach), but considering the 29-year-old twins’ high standards, that’s a slump. They are actually fourth in the Stanford ATP Doubles Race behind Erlich-Ram, Bhupathi-Knowles and Damm-Vizner.

While the Williams sisters still refuse to play at Indian Wells, the men’s and women’s fields are remain strong with most of the top players entered. I think this tournament and Key Biscayne will show us where the Americans’ collective games are, as they get to play at home on hardcourts, where they should thrive. I see it as a litmus test and a good precursor for the North American summer cement season four months down the road.

I’ll be heading to the desert over the weekend, so I’ll post from there next week. The Pacific Life Open is one of my favorite tournaments and is typically a great place to catch the tennis vibe. Players are relaxed, the sun is always out and the grounds provide natural mingling for players, media and fans.