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I have a few opinions regarding that comments delivered by the sports network commentator a well-known announcer following Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz in the US Open quarter-finals. Look – Fritz is the United States, the commentator is from the US – and sports often lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of disappointment would have been understandable. Instead, he brought up the continued absence of American men at the majors: none of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the competition.

Everyone love a storyline, myself included. But come on. Suppose the American defeated Djokovic for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also split the last seven grand slams (plus the Spaniard went on to defeat a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz stated in post-match interviews after the loss that he actually preferred his draw, because it presented the chance to beat the three best competitors in the sport in succession. Fritz is well justified to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But entering that Serbian last eight match what other person in their right mind had the lack of American champions on the brain?

The American star's weaker delivery the sole barrier standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed fourth in the world entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his last six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. Presumably he might claim that position for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that at present, that is as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of performance metrics away. His elite serve and powerful power on each forehand and backhand are sufficiently adequate to defeat the majority of opponents on the ATP tour. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, Fritz is frequently helpless. The past few seasons has witnessed the interesting emergence of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless cover the court with the alarming quickness and fluidity of smaller players. He is six-foot-five and appears that way. His footwork is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was controlling, and hitting a soft shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite harsh restriction on his upside.

Fritz has made a several dramatic, improbable improvements over the years. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. 24 months later, he was sniffing the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly surged up to fourth place – and held the spot. But the subsequent step, competing against and beating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and including a declining Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could the commentator thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the ongoing slump of US male players lifting major titles when he had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge insufficient.

The American star achieved a personal best run to the Wimbledon last four in July.

The American's play in that very quarter-final ought to have been enough of an sign. Djokovic won in four rounds, a victory that only felt tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had survived a couple championship opportunities and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair looked well-balanced during the exchanges, with Fritz earning numerous opportunities to break. But the champion saved service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the streak to the point of frustration. When Fritz eventually did claim a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a terrible game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had drawn him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to expend excessive effort to win it. Down set points in the last game, his primary delivery sailed to the sky. He extended the match two times on his second serve, but finally committed two errors. It was not a choke, I didn’t think, just a consequence of needing to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The contest was quite compelling evidence that the American is not good enough to defeat any version of Djokovic, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and never particularly appeared like he believed he could win. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities anymore, but has developed enough experience and tactical know-how to compensate for quite a bit of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were expecting the American to win, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was yet to accomplished anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a patient, thoughtful presence in media sessions, more so than almost anyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, prepared to not just say how he feels or the tactic he felt decided a match, but explain it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for the United States failing to produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist feels unfair. (Since Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the standings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

American legend Division

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

Bjorn Borg Group

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I don’t accomplish it,” the American informed a journalist in June of winning a grand slam. I hope he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying reign is actually extremely improbable for everybody else. {