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I have a few opinions regarding the comments delivered by the sports network broadcaster Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz during the New York major last eight. Consider – Fritz is the United States, the commentator is American – and athletic competitions frequently encourage nationalism. Some disappointment was understandable. Rather, he brought up the continued absence of American men at the majors: not one of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the competition.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, myself included. But come on. Even if Fritz had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature the Spanish star was waiting in the next round, who Fritz has never defeated in an official match. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him the American had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the last seven grand slams (plus the Spaniard went on to thrash a tired Serbian in the next round). Fritz stated in press following his defeat that he in fact preferred his path, because it offered the chance to defeat the three best players in the sport in succession. He is well justified to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final who else sensibly had the drought of US winners on the brain?

The American star's second serve the sole barrier standing in her way and sustained success

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the global rankings starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six encounters over third-ranked the German with growing comfort. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as far as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie a vast gap of performance metrics away. His elite delivery and concussive strength on each forehand and reverse side are more than enough to dispose of the majority of rivals on the ATP tour. When facing the handful of generational talents, though, he is often helpless. The last several years has seen the curious rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nonetheless move around with the surprising 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 legs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and playing a drop shot against him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a quite severe restriction on his potential.

The American has achieved a number of significant, improbable advancements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. Two years after, he was approaching the top 10. The previous season, he suddenly surged to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating legendary figures like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a aging Serbian, is the highest of all. What was the commentator thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the ongoing drought of US male players winning grand slams when Fritz had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge insufficient.

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

The American's performance in that very last eight match should have been sufficient of an sign. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a victory that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the very end, when the American had saved a few championship opportunities and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American creating numerous opportunities to break. But the champion rescued break point after service break opportunity, extending the run to the point of frustration. When Fritz eventually did claim one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a horrendous service game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had drawn him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and forced him to use excessive energy to win it. Down match points in the final game, Fritz’s first serve sailed to heaven. He extended the match twice on his second serve, but finally committed two errors. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, just a result of needing to hit too many second serves.

The match was fairly ironclad evidence that the American is not good enough to defeat any form of Djokovic, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the following match and never particularly seem like he believed he could win. This is absolutely fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has developed 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 prevail, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was yet to done anything that suggested he could.

The American is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful voice in press conferences, exceeding almost everyone on the men's tour aside from the Russian star, willing to not only say how he feels or the tactic he believed decided a contest, but explain it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for America not produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Now that Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can divide that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Group

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

Bjorn Borg Division

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably think about it indefinitely if I don’t do it,” the American informed a journalist in June of claiming a major. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not fulfill that objective, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable reign is in fact extremely improbable for all other players. {