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I possess some thoughts regarding the comments made by ESPN broadcaster Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz in the New York major quarter-finals. Consider – Fritz is American, Fowler is American – and athletic competitions often lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment would have been understandable. Rather, he brought up the ongoing drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a title since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the tournament.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, me too. But really. Suppose Fritz defeated the legend for the first time, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the following match, who Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, versus him the American had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven grand slams (plus Alcaraz went on to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the next round). Fritz said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he actually liked his draw, because it offered the opportunity to beat the three best competitors in the world in succession. Fritz is well within his right to aspire to the accomplishment; an athlete is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic last eight match what other person sensibly 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 number four in the world starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his last six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. Presumably he might claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that is as high as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of performance metrics away. His top-class delivery and powerful strength on each front side and backhand are more than adequate to dispose of most opponents on the professional circuit. Against the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, Fritz is often helpless. The past few seasons has witnessed the curious rise of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising speed and grace of smaller men. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His footwork is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the other player was dictating, and hitting a drop shot versus him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a pretty severe limitation on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a number of dramatic, unexpected improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the world's best thirty. Two years after, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he suddenly surged up to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a declining Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the ongoing slump of American men winning major titles when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task too little.

Taylor Fritz made a personal best advancement to the All England Club last four in the summer.

The American's performance in that very last eight match should have been enough of an sign. Djokovic won in four sets, a victory that only seemed tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had saved a couple championship opportunities and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American earning plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the streak to the point of agony. When Fritz eventually did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a horrendous game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had drawn him into a battle peripheral to the main contest and forced him to use excessive energy to prevail. Facing set points in the last game, his primary delivery floated to the sky. He extended the match two times on his backup delivery, but finally double-faulted. It wasn’t a collapse, in my opinion, only a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The contest was fairly ironclad proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any version of the Serbian, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and never particularly seem like he believed he could win. This is absolutely acceptable – Djokovic is the best player ever, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities anymore, but has acquired enough knowledge and tactical know-how to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The problem is those who were expecting the American to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was yet to accomplished anything that suggested he could.

The American is an asset to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective voice in press conferences, more so than almost anyone on the ATP aside from the Russian star, willing to not only say how he feels or the tactic he believed decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for the United States failing to spawn a male major champion since the last American titlist feels unjust. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Group

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably think about it forever if I fail to accomplish it,” Fritz informed a journalist in June of winning a major. I hope he understands that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t achieve that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is actually highly unlikely for everybody else. {