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I have a few opinions regarding the remarks made by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler after Novak Djokovic's victory over the American player in the New York major quarter-finals. Look – Fritz is the United States, Fowler is from the US – and sports frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. A little bit of disappointment would have been understandable. Rather, he brought up the continued drought of US male players at the majors: none of them has won a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the competition.

We all love a narrative, myself included. But really. Even if Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the first time, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was looming in the next round, who Fritz has never defeated in an official match. And if he’d someway survived that, it would have been title holder the Italian, against whom Fritz had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the last seven major titles (plus the Spaniard went on to defeat a tired Djokovic in the next round). He said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he in fact liked his path, because it presented the opportunity to beat the three best competitors in the sport in succession. Fritz is well within his right to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final what other person in their right mind had the drought of American champions in mind?

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 the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has won his last six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. It's likely he might claim that position for himself in the coming years. But evidently that at present, that is as far as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a vast gap of performance metrics away. His elite serve and powerful strength on each front side and backhand are more than adequate to dispose of most rivals on the ATP tour. When facing the handful of generational talents, however, Fritz is frequently helpless. The past few years has seen the interesting rise of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising speed and grace of smaller men. He is six-foot-five and looks it. His movement is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he seldom win a rally that the opponent was dictating, and hitting a drop shot against him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a quite harsh limitation on his upside.

The American has made a several dramatic, improbable improvements throughout his career. Early on of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly surged to fourth place – and held the position. But the next leap, competing against and defeating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could the commentator thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the ongoing drought of US male players winning major titles when he had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the appreciation for the magnitude of the challenge too little.

Taylor Fritz made a personal best run to the Wimbledon last four in July.

Fritz’s play in that very quarter-final should have been enough of an sign. Djokovic won in four rounds, a victory that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had saved a few match points and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The duo appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with the American creating plenty of chances to break. But the champion rescued break point after break point, prolonging the streak to the brink of agony. When he eventually did convert a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a terrible service game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had drawn him into a skirmish secondary to the main contest and forced him to expend excessive energy to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, his first serve sailed to heaven. He prolonged the match twice on his backup delivery, but finally committed two errors. It wasn’t a collapse, in my opinion, just a consequence of having to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly ironclad proof that the American is not good enough to defeat any form of Djokovic, that lost to the Spaniard in the following match and never particularly appeared like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his athletic abilities anymore, but has acquired enough experience and strategic intelligence to make up for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is those who were expecting Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was had not accomplished anything that suggested he could.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a patient, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding almost anyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, prepared to not only say how he feels or the strategy he believed determined a match, but explain 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 seems unjust. (Now that Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, maybe they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

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

“I would likely dwell on it forever if I fail to accomplish it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in June of claiming a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not achieve that goal, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable empire is in fact highly improbable for all other players. {