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I have a few thoughts regarding that comments made by ESPN broadcaster a well-known announcer after the Serbian champion's win over the American player in the US Open last eight. Look – Fritz is American, the commentator is American – and athletic competitions frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. Some letdown would have been understandable. Instead, Fowler invoked the ongoing absence of American men at the majors: none of them has won a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all love a storyline, myself included. But come on. Even if Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the first time, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was looming in the next round, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, versus him Fritz had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also divided the previous seven grand slams (plus the Spaniard went on to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he in fact preferred his draw, because it presented the chance to defeat the three best competitors in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is well justified to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is meant to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final what other person sensibly had the drought of US winners in mind?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the only thing standing in her way and consistent victories

The American, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the world entering this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has won his previous six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that is as far as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard sit a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class delivery and concussive power on each forehand and backhand are sufficiently adequate to defeat most opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of generational talents, though, Fritz is frequently helpless. The last several years has witnessed the interesting rise of tall, gangly players who can nonetheless cover the court with the alarming speed and fluidity of smaller men. He is six-foot-five and looks it. His footwork is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the other player was controlling, and hitting a soft shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite severe restriction on his potential.

The American has made a number of dramatic, unexpected advancements over the years. Early on of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the world's best thirty. 24 months after, he was approaching the top 10. The previous season, he suddenly exploded to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and beating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a declining Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the ongoing drought of American men winning major titles when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the respect for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

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

The American's performance in that exact last eight match ought to have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a win that only seemed uncertain for moments towards the conclusion, when the American had saved a couple championship opportunities and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the rallies, with the American creating plenty of opportunities to break. But Djokovic rescued service break opportunity after break point, extending the run to the point of frustration. When he finally did convert one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a terrible service game to drop serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a skirmish secondary to the real battle and forced him to use far too much energy to prevail. Down match points in the final game, his primary delivery floated to the sky. He extended the contest two times on his second serve, but ultimately committed two errors. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, just a result of needing to hit too many second serves.

The contest was quite compelling proof that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to beat any version of the Serbian, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and did not particularly appeared like he thought he could win. This is absolutely fine – Djokovic is the best player ever, and may not be at the height of his athletic abilities now, but has developed sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to make up for quite a bit of the decline. The issue is those who were anticipating the American to win, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful voice in media sessions, more so than virtually anyone on the men's tour except for Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not only express how he feels or the strategy he felt determined a contest, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for the United States not spawn a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist feels unjust. (Since Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the standings, maybe they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Division

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I would likely think about it indefinitely if I fail to do it,” Fritz informed a journalist in the summer of claiming a major. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t achieve that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable reign is actually highly unlikely for everybody else. {