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I have some opinions about that comments delivered by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's victory over the American player during the US Open last eight. Look – the athlete represents American, Fowler is American – and athletic competitions frequently encourage nationalism. Some disappointment would have been understandable. Instead, Fowler invoked the continued drought of US male players at the majors: not one of them has won a title since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all enjoy a narrative, myself included. But really. Suppose Fritz had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the next round, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And had he someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him the American had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also divided the previous seven grand slams (plus the Spaniard proceeded to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). He stated in post-match interviews after the loss that he in fact liked his draw, because it presented the chance to beat the three best players in the world in succession. Fritz is more than within his right to aim for the achievement; an athlete is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic last eight match who else in their right mind had the drought of US winners on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s weaker delivery the only thing between her and consistent victories

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked number four in the global rankings entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has won his last six matches over No 3 the German with increasing ease. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the coming years. But evidently that right now, that’s as far as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a vast gap of ranking points away. His elite serve and powerful strength on both front side and backhand are sufficiently enough to dispose of most opponents on the professional circuit. Against the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, though, he is often helpless. The past few years has witnessed the interesting rise of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless move around with the surprising quickness and grace of smaller men. He is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His footwork is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the opponent was dictating, and hitting a drop shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a pretty severe restriction on his upside.

Fritz has made a several dramatic, unexpected improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. 24 months later, he was approaching the elite ten. Last year, he suddenly exploded up to No 4 – and held the spot. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a declining Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What was the commentator have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing slump of US male players lifting major titles when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

Taylor Fritz made a personal best advancement to the Wimbledon semi-finals in the summer.

Fritz’s play in that very quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an indication. The Serbian triumphed in four rounds, a win that only felt uncertain for moments towards the very end, when the American had survived a couple match points and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo looked well-balanced during the rallies, with Fritz creating numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved service break opportunity after service break opportunity, prolonging the run to the brink of frustration. When he eventually did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a terrible service game to drop serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle secondary to the main contest and compelled him to use far too much energy to win it. Down match points in the final game, his primary delivery sailed to the sky. He extended the contest two times on his backup delivery, but finally double-faulted. It was not a choke, I didn’t think, just a result of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly ironclad proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to beat any form of Djokovic, who lost to Alcaraz in the next round and never especially seem like he believed he could win. This is absolutely acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has developed enough experience and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is those who were expecting Fritz to win, and pressuring him to do so, when he was yet to accomplished anything that indicated he could.

The American is an asset to the tour nonetheless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, exceeding virtually anyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, willing to not only express how he feels or the tactic he believed determined a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for the United States not produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist feels unjust. (Now that Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the standings, maybe they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Division

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I don’t do it,” Fritz told an interviewer in the summer of winning a major. I hope he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that objective, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is actually highly unlikely for all other players. {