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I have some thoughts about that comments made by ESPN commentator a well-known announcer following Novak Djokovic's win over the American player in the US Open last eight. Look – Fritz is American, Fowler is from the US – and sports frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown was understandable. Rather, Fowler invoked the continued absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them has won a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all love a storyline, me too. But really. Even if the American defeated the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the next round, who Fritz has never defeated in an official match. And had he someway survived that, it would have been title holder 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 (and the Spaniard went on to defeat a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz said in press after the loss that he actually liked his path, because it offered the chance to defeat the three best competitors in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is well within his right to aim for the achievement; an competitor is meant to have faith in themselves. But entering that Djokovic last eight match what other person sensibly had the lack of US winners on the brain?

The American star's second serve the only thing between her and consistent victories

The American, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the global rankings starting this week’s year-end championships and has secured his previous six matches over third-ranked the German with growing comfort. It's likely he could claim that position for himself in the coming years. But evidently that at present, that’s as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class delivery and powerful power on each forehand and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to defeat most opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, however, he is frequently overmatched. The past few years has witnessed the interesting rise of lanky, towering players who can nevertheless move around with the alarming speed and grace of much shorter players. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His footwork is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he seldom win a rally that the opponent was dictating, and hitting a drop shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That acts as a pretty harsh restriction on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a number of dramatic, unexpected improvements throughout his career. Early on of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the world's best thirty. 24 months later, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly surged up to No 4 – and held the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a declining Djokovic, is the highest of all. What was Fowler have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the ongoing slump of US male players winning major titles when Fritz had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply too much and the appreciation for the magnitude of the challenge insufficient.

Taylor Fritz made a personal best run to the Wimbledon last four in July.

Fritz’s play in that exact quarter-final should have been enough of an indication. Djokovic won in four rounds, a win that only seemed uncertain for brief periods towards the conclusion, when Fritz had survived a couple match points and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair looked evenly matched during the exchanges, with the American earning plenty of opportunities to break. But the champion saved break point after service break opportunity, prolonging the run to the point of frustration. When Fritz finally did convert one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a horrendous service game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a skirmish secondary to the real battle and forced him to expend excessive energy to prevail. Facing set points in the last game, Fritz’s first serve sailed to heaven. He prolonged the contest twice on his second serve, but ultimately committed two errors. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, only a result of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The match was fairly ironclad evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to beat any form of the Serbian, who lost to Alcaraz in the next round and did not particularly appeared like he believed he could triumph. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has acquired enough knowledge and tactical know-how to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to prevail, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was had not accomplished anything that suggested he could.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, reflective voice in media sessions, exceeding almost anyone on the ATP aside from Daniil Medvedev, willing to not only express how he feels or the tactic he believed decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should shoulder the majority of the blame for America failing to spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick feels unjust. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, perhaps they can share that load.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

American legend Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I would likely think about it indefinitely if I fail to do it,” the American told a journalist in the summer of winning a grand slam. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not achieve that objective, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying reign is in fact extremely improbable for everybody else. {