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I have a few opinions regarding that remarks made by the sports network commentator a well-known announcer after the Serbian champion's victory over Taylor Fritz during the New York major last eight. Consider – Fritz is American, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some letdown would have been appropriate. Rather, he invoked the ongoing drought of American men at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the competition.

We all enjoy a storyline, me too. But really. Suppose Fritz had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the next round, who he has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And had he someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also split the last seven major titles (and the Spaniard went on to thrash a tired Serbian in the next round). Fritz said in press after the loss that he actually liked his draw, because it offered the opportunity to defeat the three best players in the world in succession. Fritz is more than justified to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is meant to have faith in themselves. But going into that Serbian last eight match what other person in their right mind had the lack of US winners on the brain?

The American star's second serve the sole barrier between her and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is ranked number four in the world entering this week’s year-end championships and has won his previous six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. It's likely he could claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of performance metrics away. His elite serve and concussive power on each front side and backhand are sufficiently adequate to dispose of the majority of opponents on the ATP tour. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, though, he is often helpless. The last several seasons has seen the interesting rise of lanky, towering players who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and fluidity of smaller players. He is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His movement is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he seldom win a rally that the other player was controlling, and hitting a soft shot versus him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a pretty severe restriction on his upside.

The American has achieved a several dramatic, unexpected advancements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. 24 months after, he was approaching the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded to No 4 – and held the spot. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating legendary figures like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a aging Serbian, is the highest of all. What was the commentator thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the continuing drought of US male players winning grand slams when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task too little.

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

Fritz’s play in that very last eight match ought to have been enough of an indication. Djokovic won in four sets, a victory that only felt tenuous for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had survived a couple championship opportunities and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American earning numerous chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued break point after break point, prolonging the run to the point of agony. When he finally did claim one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he promptly played a horrendous service game to drop serve once more; Djokovic had drawn him into a skirmish peripheral to the real battle and forced him to expend far too much energy to prevail. Down match points in the last game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to heaven. He extended the contest two times on his second serve, but finally double-faulted. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, only a result of having to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The contest was fairly ironclad evidence that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to defeat any version of the Serbian, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and did not particularly appeared like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his athletic abilities anymore, but has developed sufficient experience and tactical know-how to make up for a significant portion of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were expecting Fritz to prevail, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was yet to accomplished anything that indicated he would.

Fritz is an asset to the tour regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful voice in press conferences, more so than almost everyone on the ATP aside from the Russian star, willing to not just express his emotions or the tactic he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he should shoulder the majority of the blame for the United States failing to produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Now that the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

American legend Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Division

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

“I would likely dwell on it forever if I fail to do it,” Fritz informed a journalist in June of winning a major. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable empire is actually extremely improbable for all other players. {