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I possess a few opinions about that remarks made by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's victory over the American player in the US Open quarter-finals. Consider – the athlete represents American, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. A little bit of disappointment would have been understandable. Instead, Fowler brought up the ongoing absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: not one of them has won a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the competition.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, me too. But come on. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the first time, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the next round, who Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And if he’d someway survived that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, against whom the American had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also split the previous seven major titles (plus Alcaraz proceeded to defeat a tired Djokovic in the next round). He said in press following his defeat that he actually preferred his path, because it presented the opportunity to defeat the three best competitors in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is well within his right to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is meant to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic last eight match who else sensibly had the drought of US winners on the brain?

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

The American, 28, is placed fourth in the world starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his last six matches over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. It's likely he could claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that is as far as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of performance metrics away. His top-class serve and concussive power on both front side and reverse side are more than adequate to defeat most opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the select few generational talents, however, Fritz is frequently helpless. The past few years has witnessed the interesting emergence of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising speed 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 limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the other player was dictating, and hitting a drop shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty severe limitation on his potential.

Fritz has made a several dramatic, improbable improvements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the world's best thirty. 24 months after, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the next leap, competing against and beating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What could the commentator have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the ongoing drought of US male players lifting grand slams when he had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply excessive and the respect for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

The American star made a career-best run to the Wimbledon last four in July.

Fritz’s performance in that very quarter-final ought to have been enough of an sign. The Serbian triumphed in four rounds, a victory that only felt uncertain for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had saved a few match points and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair looked well-balanced during the exchanges, with Fritz creating plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But the champion rescued break point after break point, extending the run to the point of agony. When he eventually did claim one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately played a horrendous game to lose his own serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to expend excessive energy to win it. Down set points in the last game, his first serve floated to the sky. He extended the contest two times on his second serve, but finally committed two errors. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, only a result of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly ironclad evidence that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of the Serbian, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the following match and never especially seem like he thought he could win. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the best player ever, and may not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has acquired sufficient knowledge and tactical know-how to compensate for quite a bit of the drop-off. The issue is those who were expecting Fritz to win, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was yet to accomplished anything that indicated he could.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, more so than almost anyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, prepared to not just express his emotions or the strategy he felt determined a contest, but explain it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for the United States not spawn a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unjust. (Now that Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Group

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Division

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably think about it forever if I fail to do it,” Fritz told a journalist in June of claiming a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable empire is in fact extremely unlikely for all other players. {