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I have a few thoughts regarding the remarks made by ESPN broadcaster a well-known announcer after Novak Djokovic's victory over the American player in the New York major last eight. Consider – Fritz is the United States, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown would have been appropriate. Rather, Fowler brought up the continued absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the tournament.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, me too. But really. Even if the American had beaten Djokovic for the first time, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was looming in the following match, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an official match. And had he someway survived that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven grand slams (and Alcaraz proceeded to defeat a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz stated in press following his defeat that he actually preferred his path, because it offered the opportunity to defeat the top three players in the world in succession. 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 in their right mind had the lack of American champions in mind?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the sole barrier between her and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is ranked fourth in the global rankings starting this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six matches over No 3 the German with growing comfort. Presumably he could claim that position for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as far as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a chasm of performance metrics away. Fritz’s top-class serve and powerful strength on each front side and reverse side are more than enough to dispose of most opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, he is frequently helpless. The last several years has witnessed the interesting rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the alarming quickness and grace of much shorter players. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His footwork is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and hitting a soft shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That acts as a quite harsh restriction on his upside.

The American has achieved a several significant, unexpected improvements throughout his career. Early on of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the bottom of the world's best thirty. 24 months later, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded to fourth place – and held the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and even a declining Djokovic, is the highest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing slump of American men winning major titles when Fritz had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply excessive and the respect for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

The American star made a personal best run to the Wimbledon last four in the summer.

Fritz’s performance in that exact last eight match should have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a victory that only felt tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had saved a couple championship opportunities and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with Fritz creating numerous chances to break. But Djokovic saved break point after break point, extending the streak to the brink of frustration. When Fritz eventually did claim one of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately played a terrible service game to drop serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the main contest and compelled him to expend excessive energy to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, his primary delivery sailed to heaven. He extended the match twice on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, I didn’t think, just a consequence of needing to hit too many second serves.

The match was quite compelling proof that the American is not good enough to defeat any version of the Serbian, that lost to Alcaraz in the next round and never especially seem like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has developed enough knowledge and tactical know-how to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The issue is those who were expecting the American to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not done anything that suggested he could.

The American is an valuable contributor to the tour nonetheless. He’s a patient, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding virtually everyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, willing to not just express his emotions or the strategy he believed determined a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for the United States not produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist seems unfair. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Division

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Group

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

“I would likely think about it forever if I fail to do it,” Fritz told an interviewer in June of winning a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is in fact extremely unlikely for everybody else. {