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I have a few thoughts about the comments made by the sports network commentator a well-known announcer following Novak Djokovic's victory over the American player during the New York major quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents American, the commentator is from the US – and sports often lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown would have been appropriate. Rather, Fowler brought up the ongoing drought of American men at the majors: not one of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all enjoy a narrative, myself included. But really. Suppose the American defeated the legend for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was looming in the following match, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, against whom Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the last seven major titles (plus the Spaniard went on to thrash a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). He said in press after the loss that he in fact liked his draw, because it offered the chance to beat the three best competitors in the sport back-to-back. He is more than justified to aspire to the accomplishment; an athlete is meant to have faith in themselves. But entering that Serbian quarter-final who else sensibly had the drought of American champions on the brain?

The American star's second serve the only thing standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, 28, is ranked fourth in the global rankings starting this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has won his previous six matches over third-ranked the German with growing comfort. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the coming years. But evidently that at present, that’s as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard sit a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s elite delivery and powerful power on each front side and backhand are more than enough to dispose of most rivals on the ATP tour. Against the handful of generational talents, though, Fritz is frequently overmatched. The last several years has witnessed the curious rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and grace of smaller players. Fritz 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 win a rally that the opponent was dictating, and playing a soft shot against him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a pretty harsh restriction on his potential.

The American has made a number of dramatic, unexpected improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the elite ten. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded up to fourth place – and held the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and beating legendary figures like Alcaraz, the Italian, and including a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What was the commentator have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the ongoing drought of US male players lifting grand slams when he had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge insufficient.

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

Fritz’s performance in that very last eight match ought to have been sufficient of an indication. The Serbian triumphed in four sets, a victory that only seemed tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had saved a few match points and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo appeared evenly matched during the exchanges, with Fritz earning plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But the champion rescued service break opportunity after break point, extending the run to the brink of frustration. When he eventually did claim one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately produced a horrendous game to drop serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and forced him to expend far too much effort to win it. Down set points in the last game, his primary delivery sailed to the sky. He extended the match two times on his second serve, but finally committed two errors. It wasn’t a choke, I didn’t think, only a consequence of having to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The contest was fairly compelling proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to beat any form of the Serbian, that was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and never particularly appeared like he believed he could win. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has developed sufficient knowledge and tactical know-how to compensate for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to win, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was had not accomplished anything that indicated he would.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful voice in media sessions, exceeding virtually anyone on the men's tour except for Daniil Medvedev, willing to not just express how he feels or the strategy he felt determined a contest, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the responsibility for the United States failing to produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, maybe they can divide that burden.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably think about it indefinitely if I fail to do it,” the American informed a journalist in June of claiming a grand slam. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t achieve that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable empire is in fact highly improbable for all other players. {