James Riley Blake (born 28 December 1979) is an American professional tennis player. Blake was born in Yonkers, New York to parents Thomas Sr. (an African-American) and Betty (who is European-English). He has a brother, Thomas Jr., who is also a professional tennis player, and two older half-brothers, Christopher and Howard. Blake attended Fairfield Warde High School, in Fairfield, Connecticut. He dropped out of Harvard University after his sophomore year to pursue a career in tennis. Blake was inspired to pursue tennis after hearing his role model, Arthur Ashe, speak to the Harlem Junior Tennis Program. Brian Barker was his first (and current) coach. At age 21, Blake saw his first Davis Cup action in 2001 against India and became the third African-American man to play the Davis Cup for the United States. Blake won the 2002 USTA Waikola Challenger in Hawaii. He has also twice won the Hopman Cup (with Serena Williams & Lindsay Davenport). Blake was named Rookie of the Year for the 2000 World Team Tennis season.