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I have some opinions about that remarks made by the sports network broadcaster a well-known announcer following the Serbian champion's victory over the American player during the US Open last eight. Consider – Fritz is American, Fowler is from the US – and sports frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. Some letdown would have been understandable. Rather, Fowler invoked the continued absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, me too. But come on. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the following match, whom Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And if he’d someway survived that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, against whom the American had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven major titles (and the Spaniard proceeded to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). He stated in post-match interviews following his defeat that he actually preferred his draw, because it offered the opportunity to beat the top three competitors in the sport back-to-back. He is well justified to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is meant to believe in themselves. But going into that Serbian last eight match what other person in their right mind had the lack of American champions on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s weaker delivery the only thing standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the world entering this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six encounters over No 3 the German with growing comfort. It's likely he might take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that is as high as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class delivery and concussive strength on both forehand and reverse side are sufficiently enough to dispose of the majority of opponents on the ATP tour. Against the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, he is often helpless. The past few years has seen the interesting emergence of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the alarming speed and fluidity of smaller players. He is six-foot-five and appears that way. His footwork is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the opponent was controlling, and playing a soft shot against him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a pretty harsh limitation on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a several dramatic, unexpected improvements over the years. Early on of the ten-year period, he was circling the lower end of the world's best thirty. 24 months after, he was sniffing the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and beating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and including a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the ongoing slump of US male players winning major titles when Fritz had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply excessive and the appreciation for the magnitude of the challenge insufficient.

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

Fritz’s play in that very quarter-final should have been sufficient of an sign. Djokovic triumphed in four rounds, a win that only felt uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had survived a few championship opportunities and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair looked evenly matched during the exchanges, with the American earning plenty of opportunities to break. But Djokovic rescued service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the streak to the brink of frustration. When Fritz finally did convert a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately produced a horrendous service game to lose his own serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish secondary to the real battle and forced him to use excessive effort to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, Fritz’s first serve floated to the sky. He extended the match twice on his backup delivery, but finally double-faulted. It was not a collapse, I didn’t think, only a result of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The contest was fairly ironclad evidence that Fritz is not good enough to defeat any form of Djokovic, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and never particularly appeared like he believed he could win. This is absolutely fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the height of his athletic abilities anymore, but has developed enough knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to win, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was had not accomplished anything that suggested he could.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in media sessions, more so than almost everyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, willing to not just express how he feels or the tactic he felt decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for the United States failing to produce a male major champion since the last American titlist seems unfair. (Since Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the standings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Group

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably think about it forever if I don’t accomplish it,” the American told an interviewer in June of claiming a grand slam. It is hoped he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not achieve that objective, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is actually extremely unlikely for all other players. {