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I have some thoughts about the comments delivered by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz in the New York major quarter-finals. Look – Fritz is American, the commentator is American – and athletic competitions frequently lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of letdown was appropriate. Instead, he invoked the continued absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: none of them has won a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all enjoy a storyline, myself included. But come on. Even if the American defeated the legend for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the next round, who Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And if he’d someway survived that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, against whom the American had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven grand slams (plus the Spaniard proceeded to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). He stated in press following his defeat that he actually preferred his path, because it presented the chance to defeat the top three players in the sport in succession. Fritz is more than within his right to aim for the accomplishment; an athlete is supposed to believe in themselves. But going into that Djokovic last eight match what other person in their right mind had the lack of US winners on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the sole barrier standing in her way and sustained success

Fritz, twenty-eight, is ranked fourth in the global rankings entering this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has won his last six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. It's likely he might take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that at present, that’s as far as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class serve and concussive strength on each forehand and reverse side are more than adequate to dispose of most opponents on the professional circuit. Against the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, however, Fritz is frequently helpless. The last several seasons has witnessed the curious rise of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless move around with the surprising speed and fluidity of smaller players. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His footwork is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and hitting a soft shot against him is usually a safe bet. That acts as a quite severe limitation on his potential.

Fritz has achieved a several dramatic, unexpected improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. Two years after, he was approaching the elite ten. Last year, he suddenly exploded to No 4 – and maintained the spot. But the next leap, mixing it up with and beating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and including a declining Serbian, is the toughest of all. What was the commentator have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the continuing slump of US male players lifting 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 achieved a personal best run to the All England Club semi-finals in July.

The American's play in that exact quarter-final ought to have been enough of an sign. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a win that only seemed tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had survived a few championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair looked evenly matched during the rallies, with Fritz creating plenty of chances to break. But the champion rescued service break opportunity 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 middle stanza, he promptly played a terrible service game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had drawn him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and forced him to use far too much energy to prevail. Down match points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery sailed to heaven. He extended the contest two times on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, just a result of having to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The contest was fairly compelling proof that Fritz is not good enough to defeat any form of Djokovic, that lost to the Spaniard in the following match and did not especially seem 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 physical powers anymore, but has acquired sufficient experience and strategic intelligence to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were expecting the American to win, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not accomplished anything that indicated he could.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a patient, reflective presence in media sessions, more so than virtually everyone on the men's tour aside from the Russian star, willing to not only express how he feels or the tactic he believed determined a match, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for the United States not produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that load.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

American legend Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely dwell on it forever if I fail to do it,” Fritz informed a journalist in the summer of claiming a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not fulfill that objective, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable reign is actually extremely unlikely for all other players. {