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I possess some thoughts regarding that comments made by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler after the Serbian champion's victory over Taylor Fritz during the New York major last eight. Consider – Fritz is the United States, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown was understandable. Instead, he invoked the continued absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none of them has won a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all love a narrative, myself included. But really. Suppose Fritz defeated the legend for the first time, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the following match, whom he has yet to beat in an official match. And had he someway survived that, it would have been title holder the Italian, against whom Fritz had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the last seven grand slams (and Alcaraz proceeded to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). He said in post-match interviews after the loss that he actually preferred his path, because it offered the opportunity to defeat the top three players in the world back-to-back. He is more than justified to aim for the achievement; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Serbian last eight match what other person sensibly had the drought of US winners on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the sole barrier standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the world entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six encounters over third-ranked the German with growing comfort. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that at present, that’s as far as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s elite serve and concussive strength on both front side and reverse side are more than enough to dispose of most rivals on the professional circuit. Against the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, however, he is frequently overmatched. The past few years has witnessed the curious emergence of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless move around with the surprising speed and fluidity of smaller players. He is six-foot-five and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the opponent was controlling, and hitting a drop shot versus him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a quite severe restriction on his potential.

Fritz has achieved a number of significant, unexpected advancements over the years. Early on of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. 24 months later, he was approaching the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly surged to No 4 – and held the spot. But the next leap, competing against and beating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What was the commentator have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the continuing drought of American men lifting grand slams when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just excessive and the appreciation for the magnitude of the challenge too little.

Taylor Fritz achieved a personal best advancement to the All England Club semi-finals in the summer.

The American's play in that very quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic won in four rounds, a victory that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the conclusion, when the American had saved a few championship opportunities and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The duo looked evenly matched during the exchanges, with the American creating numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But the champion saved break point after break point, prolonging the streak to the brink of frustration. When he eventually did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a terrible service game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to use far too much effort to prevail. Down match points in the last game, his first serve floated to heaven. He extended the contest two times on his backup delivery, but finally double-faulted. It was not a choke, in my opinion, just a result of needing to hit too many second serves.

The match was quite compelling proof that Fritz is not good enough to defeat any form of the Serbian, who was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and never especially appeared like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired enough knowledge and tactical know-how to compensate for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to win, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was yet to accomplished anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the tour nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in press conferences, more so than virtually anyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, willing to not only express how he feels or the strategy he believed determined a match, but clarify it. That he should shoulder the majority of the blame for America failing to produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Now that Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, maybe they can share that load.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

American legend Division

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Group

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

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