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I possess a few thoughts regarding the comments made by the sports network broadcaster a well-known announcer after Novak Djokovic's victory over Taylor Fritz in the US Open last eight. Look – the athlete represents American, Fowler is American – and athletic competitions frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown would have been understandable. Instead, Fowler invoked the ongoing absence of US male players at the majors: none of them had lifted a title since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all enjoy a narrative, myself included. But come on. Suppose the American defeated the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the following match, who he has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, against whom the American had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also divided the last seven major titles (and Alcaraz went on to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz said in post-match interviews after the loss that he in fact liked his path, because it offered the chance to defeat the top three players in the world back-to-back. Fritz 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 lack of US winners on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s weaker delivery the only thing between her and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the global rankings entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he might claim that position for himself in the coming years. But evidently 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 both front side and reverse side are sufficiently enough to dispose of most rivals on the ATP tour. When facing the select few generational talents, however, Fritz is often helpless. The past few years has seen the interesting rise of lanky, towering athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and fluidity of much shorter 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 seldom win a rally that the other player was dictating, and hitting a drop shot versus him is typically a safe bet. That serves as a quite harsh restriction on his potential.

The American has achieved a several significant, unexpected improvements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. 24 months after, he was approaching the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly surged to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and beating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, Sinner, and including a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What was Fowler thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the ongoing slump of American men lifting grand slams when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

Taylor Fritz achieved a career-best run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

The American's play in that exact quarter-final should have been enough of an indication. Djokovic won in four rounds, a victory that only seemed uncertain for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had saved a few championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the exchanges, with Fritz creating plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved break point after break point, prolonging the streak to the brink of frustration. When Fritz finally did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a horrendous game to drop serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the main contest and compelled him to expend far too much energy to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, his first serve sailed to heaven. He prolonged the contest two times on his second serve, but finally double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, only a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The contest was fairly ironclad proof that the American is not good enough to beat any form of Djokovic, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and never especially seem like he believed he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has acquired sufficient experience and tactical know-how to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The issue is the individuals who were expecting Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was yet to accomplished anything that indicated he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the tour regardless. He’s a patient, reflective voice in press conferences, more so than virtually anyone on the men's tour except for Daniil Medvedev, willing to not just say his emotions or the strategy he felt decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for the United States failing to spawn a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist feels unfair. (Now that the fellow American is competing alongside him in the standings, maybe they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Group

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

“I would likely dwell on it forever if I don’t do it,” Fritz told a journalist in the summer of claiming a grand slam. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that objective, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable empire is in fact extremely improbable for all other players. {