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I have some opinions about the remarks delivered by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's win over the American player during the US Open quarter-finals. Consider – Fritz is the United States, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions often encourage patriotic sentiment. Some letdown would have been understandable. Rather, Fowler invoked the ongoing absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the tournament.

Everyone love a storyline, me too. But come on. Suppose Fritz defeated the legend for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was looming in the next round, who Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also split the previous seven major titles (and the Spaniard went on to defeat a tired Djokovic in the subsequent match). He said in press after the loss that he actually liked his draw, because it presented the opportunity to defeat the three best competitors in the world back-to-back. He is well justified to aim for the achievement; an athlete is meant to have faith in themselves. But entering that Djokovic last eight match who else sensibly had the lack of American champions in mind?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the only thing between her and consistent victories

The American, 28, is placed fourth in the global rankings entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six matches over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class delivery and concussive strength on both front side and backhand are sufficiently adequate to dispose of the majority of rivals on the ATP tour. When facing the handful of generational talents, however, Fritz is often overmatched. The past few seasons has seen the interesting emergence of lanky, towering players who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising speed and fluidity of smaller men. He is six-foot-five and looks it. His movement is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was controlling, and hitting a soft shot versus him is usually a reliable tactic. That acts as a quite harsh limitation on his potential.

Fritz has made a number of dramatic, improbable advancements throughout his career. Early on of the decade, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he suddenly exploded up to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and even a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What was the commentator have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the continuing drought of American men winning grand slams when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the respect for the magnitude of the task too little.

The American star achieved a personal best run to the All England Club semi-finals in July.

Fritz’s play in that exact quarter-final ought to have been enough of an indication. The Serbian won in four rounds, a win that only felt uncertain for moments towards the very end, when Fritz had survived a couple championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the exchanges, with Fritz earning plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But the champion saved break point after break point, prolonging the streak to the point of frustration. When Fritz finally did convert one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately produced a horrendous game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had drawn him into a skirmish secondary to the real battle and forced him to use excessive effort to win it. Facing set points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to the sky. He extended the match twice on his backup delivery, but finally committed two errors. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, only a consequence of having to hit too many second serves.

The match was fairly ironclad proof that the American is not good enough to beat any version of Djokovic, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and did not particularly appeared like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the best player ever, and may not be at the height of his athletic abilities anymore, but has developed enough knowledge and tactical know-how to make up for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is those who were anticipating the American to win, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not done anything that indicated he could.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, thoughtful voice in media sessions, more so than virtually everyone on the men's tour except for Daniil Medvedev, willing to not only express his emotions or the strategy he believed decided a contest, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for America failing to spawn a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist feels unjust. (Now that the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, maybe they can divide that load.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely think about it indefinitely if I fail to accomplish it,” the American informed a journalist in the summer of winning a grand slam. It is hoped he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not achieve that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable reign is in fact extremely unlikely for everybody else. {