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I possess some thoughts about the comments made by the sports network broadcaster a well-known announcer following the Serbian champion's win over the American player during the New York major quarter-finals. Consider – Fritz is American, the commentator is American – and sports frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown was appropriate. Rather, Fowler invoked the continued drought of American men at the majors: none of them has won a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the tournament.

Everyone love a storyline, me too. But come on. Suppose the American defeated Djokovic for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was looming in the next round, whom he has yet to beat in an official match. And had he somehow survived that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, against whom the American had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven major titles (plus Alcaraz went on to thrash a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). He stated in press following his defeat that he actually preferred his draw, because it offered the opportunity to beat the top three players in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is more than justified to aim for the achievement; an competitor is meant to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic quarter-final who else sensibly had the drought of American champions in mind?

The American star's second serve the only thing between her and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, 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 Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. Presumably he might claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that is as high as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class serve and powerful power on both forehand and backhand are more than enough to defeat the majority of opponents on the ATP tour. Against the select few generational talents, though, Fritz is frequently helpless. The last several years has seen the curious emergence of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless move around with the alarming speed and grace of smaller players. Fritz is six-foot-five and appears that way. His footwork is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and hitting a drop shot versus him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a pretty severe limitation on his potential.

The American has achieved a number of significant, unexpected improvements throughout his career. Early on of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. Two years after, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he suddenly surged to No 4 – and maintained the spot. But the next leap, competing against and defeating legendary figures like Alcaraz, the Italian, and including a declining Djokovic, is the highest of all. What was Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the ongoing drought of US male players winning grand slams when he had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the respect for the magnitude of the challenge too little.

The American star achieved a personal best run to the All England Club last four in July.

The American's performance in that exact last eight match should have been enough of an indication. The Serbian triumphed in four rounds, a win that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had survived a couple championship opportunities and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair looked well-balanced during the rallies, with Fritz earning plenty of chances to break. But Djokovic rescued break point after break point, prolonging the run to the brink of agony. When Fritz finally did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he promptly produced a terrible service game to drop serve once more; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle secondary to the main contest and compelled him to use far too much effort to prevail. Down match points in the final game, his first serve sailed to heaven. He extended the match two times on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It was not a choke, I didn’t think, just a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The contest was fairly compelling proof that the American is not good enough to defeat any form of the Serbian, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and did not particularly appeared like he believed he could triumph. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his athletic abilities anymore, but has developed enough experience and strategic intelligence to make up for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is those who were anticipating the American to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was had not done anything that indicated he could.

The American is an asset to the tour nonetheless. He’s a patient, thoughtful voice in press conferences, exceeding almost everyone on the men's tour except for the Russian star, willing to not just say his emotions or the tactic he believed decided a contest, but clarify it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the blame for America failing to spawn a male major champion since the last American titlist seems 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
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Group

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

“I’d probably think about it forever if I fail to do it,” Fritz told an interviewer in June of claiming a grand slam. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not fulfill that goal, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable reign is actually extremely improbable for all other players. {