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I possess a few opinions about that comments delivered by the sports network commentator a well-known announcer after Novak Djokovic's win over the American player in the New York major quarter-finals. Consider – Fritz is American, the commentator is American – and sports frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown was appropriate. Rather, he invoked the continued drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all enjoy a storyline, myself included. But come on. Even if the American defeated the legend for the first time, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the next round, whom he has never defeated in an official match. And had he somehow gotten past that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, versus him the American had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also divided the previous seven grand slams (and the Spaniard went on to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). He said in press after the loss that he in fact preferred his path, because it offered the chance to beat the top three competitors in the sport back-to-back. He is more than within his right to aim for the accomplishment; an athlete is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final who else in their right mind had the lack of American champions on the brain?

The American star's second serve the sole barrier standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, is ranked fourth in the world starting this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has won his previous six encounters over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that right now, that’s as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class serve and powerful strength on both forehand and reverse side are more than adequate to defeat the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of generational talents, however, Fritz is frequently overmatched. The last several seasons has seen the interesting rise of lanky, towering athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the alarming speed and grace of smaller men. Fritz is six-foot-five and appears that way. His footwork is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he seldom win a rally that the other player was dictating, and playing a soft shot versus him is typically a safe bet. That serves as a quite harsh restriction on his upside.

The American has made a number of dramatic, unexpected advancements throughout his career. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he suddenly exploded to No 4 – and held the spot. But the subsequent step, competing against and beating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the continuing drought of US male players lifting major titles when he had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just excessive and the respect for the difficulty of the challenge insufficient.

Taylor Fritz made a personal best run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

Fritz’s performance in that exact quarter-final ought to have been enough of an indication. The Serbian won in four sets, a victory that only felt tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had survived a couple match points and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the rallies, with the American creating numerous opportunities to break. But Djokovic saved service break opportunity after service break opportunity, extending the streak to the brink of frustration. When he eventually did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a terrible service game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had drawn him into a skirmish secondary to the main contest and compelled him to expend excessive effort to prevail. Facing match points in the last game, Fritz’s first serve floated to the sky. He prolonged the contest twice on his second serve, but finally double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, only a consequence of needing to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The contest was fairly ironclad evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of the Serbian, who lost to Alcaraz in the next round and never especially seem like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired enough knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for quite a bit of the drop-off. The issue is those who were expecting the American to win, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that indicated he would.

Fritz is an asset to the tour nonetheless. He’s a patient, thoughtful voice in press conferences, exceeding virtually anyone on the ATP aside from Daniil Medvedev, willing to not only express his emotions or the tactic he felt decided a match, but explain it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for America not produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Since the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, perhaps they can divide that load.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely dwell on it forever if I fail to do it,” Fritz told an interviewer in the summer of claiming a grand slam. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not a failure if he does not achieve that objective, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is in fact extremely improbable for everybody else. {