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I have a few thoughts about that remarks made by the sports network commentator a well-known announcer after Novak Djokovic's win over the American player in the New York major last eight. Look – the athlete represents the United States, the commentator is American – and sports frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment was understandable. Rather, he invoked the continued absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: none of them has won a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, me too. But come on. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic 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 had he somehow gotten past that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, against whom Fritz had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also divided the previous seven grand slams (and Alcaraz went on to defeat a fatigued Djokovic in the subsequent match). Fritz said in press following his defeat that he actually preferred his path, because it offered the opportunity to beat the three best players in the world in succession. Fritz is more than within his right to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is meant to believe in themselves. But going into that Djokovic quarter-final who else in their right mind had the drought of American champions in mind?

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

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked fourth in the global rankings entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six encounters over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that right now, that’s as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s elite delivery and concussive power on each front side and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to dispose of most rivals on the professional circuit. Against the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, Fritz is often overmatched. The last several years has witnessed the curious rise of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless move around with the alarming quickness and grace of much shorter men. He is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the other player was dictating, and hitting a soft shot versus him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a pretty harsh limitation on his upside.

Fritz has made a number of dramatic, improbable improvements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. Two years after, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded up to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and beating legendary figures like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a declining Djokovic, is the highest of all. What was Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing slump of American men lifting major titles when he had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

The American star achieved a personal best advancement to the Wimbledon semi-finals in the summer.

Fritz’s performance in that exact last eight match should have been sufficient of an sign. The Serbian won in four sets, a victory that only seemed tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had saved a couple championship opportunities and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The duo looked evenly matched during the exchanges, with Fritz earning numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But the champion rescued break point after service break opportunity, extending the streak to the brink of frustration. When he finally did claim one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a terrible game to lose his own serve once more; Djokovic had drawn him into a battle secondary to the main contest and forced him to use far too much effort to win it. Down set points in the last game, his first serve sailed to heaven. He prolonged the contest twice on his second serve, but finally committed two errors. It was not a choke, in my opinion, only a result of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The contest was fairly compelling evidence that Fritz is not good enough to beat any form of the Serbian, who lost to Alcaraz in the next round and did not particularly seem like he thought he could win. This is absolutely acceptable – the Serbian is the best player ever, and may not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has acquired sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to make up for a significant portion of the decline. The issue is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that indicated he would.

The American is an asset to the tour nonetheless. He’s a patient, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding almost everyone on the men's tour except for Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not only express his emotions or the tactic he believed determined a contest, but explain it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for America not produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Now that Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, maybe they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I would likely think about it forever if I don’t do it,” the American informed a journalist in the summer of winning a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that objective, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is in fact extremely unlikely for everybody else. {