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I have some opinions about that remarks delivered by ESPN broadcaster Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's win over the American player during the US Open quarter-finals. Consider – the athlete represents American, the commentator is American – and sports often encourage patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment was understandable. Instead, he brought up the ongoing absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all enjoy a storyline, myself included. But really. Even if the American had beaten the legend for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was looming in the following match, whom Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven major titles (plus Alcaraz proceeded to defeat a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz stated in press following his defeat that he actually liked his path, because it offered the opportunity to defeat the top three competitors in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is more than within his right to aim for the accomplishment; an athlete is meant to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final what other person sensibly had the lack of US winners in mind?

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

Fritz, twenty-eight, is ranked fourth in the global rankings entering the upcoming year-end championships and has secured his previous six matches over No 3 the German with increasing ease. Presumably he could claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that is as far as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard sit a chasm of performance metrics away. His elite delivery and powerful power on each forehand and backhand are more than enough to dispose of most opponents on the ATP tour. Against the handful of generational talents, though, he is often helpless. The last several years has seen the curious emergence of lanky, towering athletes who can nonetheless move around with the alarming quickness and fluidity of smaller players. Fritz is six-foot-five and appears that way. His movement is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the opponent was controlling, and playing a drop shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a pretty severe restriction on his potential.

The American has made a number of dramatic, improbable advancements over the years. Early on of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the world's best thirty. 24 months later, he was sniffing the elite ten. Last year, he suddenly surged to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and beating legendary figures like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a declining Djokovic, is the highest of all. What was Fowler thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the ongoing slump of American men winning major titles when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task too little.

The American star achieved a career-best run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

Fritz’s play in that very quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an sign. The Serbian won in four rounds, a win that only felt tenuous for moments 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 rallies, with the American creating numerous chances to break. But the champion saved service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the run to the brink of agony. When Fritz finally did convert one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately played a terrible game to lose his own serve once more; Djokovic had lulled him into a skirmish secondary to the real battle and forced him to expend excessive energy to win it. Facing set points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery sailed to the sky. He prolonged the match two times on his backup delivery, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, only a consequence of needing to hit too many second serves.

The match was quite ironclad evidence that the American is not good enough to beat any form of Djokovic, who lost to Alcaraz in the following match and did not particularly seem like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly acceptable – Djokovic is the best player ever, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired enough knowledge and strategic intelligence to make up for a significant portion of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were expecting the American to win, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that indicated he could.

The American is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, more so than virtually everyone on the men's tour except for Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not just say how he feels or the tactic he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for the United States failing to produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist feels unjust. (Since Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can divide that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely dwell on it indefinitely if I fail to accomplish it,” Fritz told an interviewer in the summer of claiming a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t achieve that objective, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable empire is actually extremely improbable for everybody else. {