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I have a few opinions regarding that remarks delivered by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's victory over the American player in the US Open last eight. Consider – the athlete represents American, the commentator is from the US – and sports often lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some letdown was appropriate. Rather, Fowler brought up the ongoing absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the competition.

Everyone enjoy a storyline, myself included. But really. Even if Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, whom he has yet to beat in an official match. And had he someway gotten past that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, against whom Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven major titles (and Alcaraz went on to defeat a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). He stated in press following his defeat that he actually preferred his path, because it presented the opportunity to beat the three best players in the sport in succession. He is well within his right to aspire to the accomplishment; an competitor is meant to have faith 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 weaker delivery the sole barrier between her and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed fourth in the world entering this week’s year-end championships and has won his last six matches over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. Presumably he might claim that position for himself in the coming years. But evidently that right now, that is as far as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of performance metrics away. His top-class serve and concussive power on each front side and backhand are more than adequate to dispose of the majority of opponents on the ATP tour. Against the handful of generational talents, though, Fritz is often helpless. The last several seasons has seen the interesting rise of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless move around with the surprising quickness and grace of smaller men. Fritz is six-foot-five and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the other player was controlling, and hitting a soft shot versus him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a pretty harsh restriction on his upside.

The American has made a number of significant, improbable advancements over the years. Early on of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the world's best thirty. 24 months later, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded to No 4 – and maintained the spot. But the next leap, mixing it up with and beating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a declining Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could the commentator have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the ongoing drought of American men lifting grand slams when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the respect for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

Taylor Fritz made a career-best run to the All England Club semi-finals in the summer.

Fritz’s performance in that exact quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four rounds, a win that only felt tenuous for moments towards the very end, when the American had survived a couple championship opportunities and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair looked well-balanced during the exchanges, with Fritz earning plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But the champion rescued service break opportunity after break point, extending the streak to the point of frustration. When he finally did convert a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a horrendous service game to lose his own serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish secondary to the real battle and forced him to expend far too much energy to prevail. Facing match points in the last game, Fritz’s first serve sailed to heaven. He extended the match two times on his backup delivery, but ultimately committed two errors. It wasn’t a choke, I didn’t think, just a consequence of having to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The match was fairly ironclad evidence that the American is not good enough to beat any form of the Serbian, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and never particularly seem like he believed he could win. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has developed sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The issue is those who were expecting the American to prevail, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was had not done anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a patient, reflective presence in media sessions, exceeding almost everyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, willing to not only express his emotions or the strategy he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for America not spawn a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist feels unfair. (Since the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, maybe they can divide that load.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I don’t do it,” Fritz informed a journalist in June of claiming a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t achieve that objective, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying reign is in fact extremely improbable for all other players. {