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I possess a few opinions about that comments made by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler after Novak Djokovic's win over the American player in the US Open last eight. Look – Fritz is American, Fowler is American – and athletic competitions frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment was understandable. Rather, he brought up the continued drought of American men at grand slam tournaments: none of them has won a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all enjoy a storyline, me too. But come on. Suppose Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the next round, who Fritz has never defeated in an official match. And had he someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him the American had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven major titles (plus the Spaniard went on to defeat a tired Djokovic in the next round). Fritz said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he actually liked his draw, because it offered the opportunity to beat the three best competitors in the sport in succession. He is well justified to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic quarter-final who else sensibly had the drought of US winners in mind?

The American star's second serve the only thing between her and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is placed number four in the world starting the upcoming year-end championships and has won his last six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. It's likely he might claim that position for himself in the future. But evidently that at present, that is as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a vast gap of performance metrics away. His top-class delivery and concussive strength on each front side and backhand are more than enough to defeat the majority of rivals on the ATP tour. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, Fritz is frequently helpless. The past few years has witnessed the curious rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the alarming speed and fluidity of smaller men. He is six-foot-five and appears that way. His movement is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he seldom win a rally that the opponent was dictating, and playing a drop shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite severe limitation on his potential.

The American has achieved a number of significant, improbable improvements throughout his career. Early on of the decade, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he suddenly exploded up to No 4 – and held the spot. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a declining Djokovic, is the highest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the continuing slump of American men lifting major titles when he had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just too much and the respect for the magnitude of the challenge insufficient.

Taylor Fritz made a career-best advancement to the Wimbledon last four in July.

Fritz’s play in that exact quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an indication. The Serbian won in four rounds, a win that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the very end, when the American had survived a couple championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair looked evenly matched during the rallies, with the American earning plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued break point after break point, extending the streak to the point of frustration. When Fritz eventually did claim a single of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he promptly produced a horrendous game to drop serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the main contest and forced him to use far too much energy to win it. Down set points in the last game, his first serve sailed to the sky. He prolonged the match twice on his second serve, but finally committed two errors. It was not a choke, I didn’t think, only a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The contest was fairly compelling proof that the American is not good enough to beat any form of Djokovic, that lost to the Spaniard in the following match and did not particularly seem like he thought he could win. This is perfectly acceptable – Djokovic is the best player ever, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities anymore, but has developed sufficient knowledge and tactical know-how to make up for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is those who were anticipating Fritz to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit regardless. He’s a patient, thoughtful voice in media sessions, more so than virtually anyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, willing to not just express his emotions or the tactic he felt determined a match, but explain it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America failing to spawn a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Now that the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that load.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

American legend Division

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Group

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I don’t do it,” Fritz informed a journalist in the summer of winning a major. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t achieve that objective, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying reign is actually extremely improbable for everybody else. {