🔗 Share this article

I have a few thoughts regarding that remarks made by ESPN broadcaster Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's victory over Taylor Fritz in the New York major quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents American, the commentator is American – and athletic competitions often encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown would have been appropriate. Instead, he invoked the continued absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a title since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the competition.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, me too. But really. Even if Fritz had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the next round, who Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And had he someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also divided the last seven major titles (and Alcaraz proceeded to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz said in press following his defeat that he in fact liked his draw, because it presented the chance to defeat the top three players in the world in succession. Fritz is well within his right to aspire to the achievement; an athlete is meant to have faith in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final 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 sustained success

The American, 28, is ranked fourth in the global rankings entering this week’s year-end championships and has won his previous six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he could claim that position for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that at present, that is as high as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of performance metrics away. Fritz’s elite serve and concussive strength on both forehand and backhand are sufficiently enough to dispose of the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of generational talents, however, Fritz is frequently overmatched. The last several seasons has witnessed the curious rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless move around with the alarming quickness and grace of smaller players. Fritz is six-foot-five and appears that way. His footwork is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and playing a drop shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a pretty severe restriction on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a several dramatic, unexpected advancements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the bottom of the world's best thirty. Two years after, he was approaching the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly surged up to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and including a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the ongoing slump of American men winning major titles when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply too much and the appreciation for the magnitude of the task too little.

The American star made a personal best advancement to the Wimbledon semi-finals in the summer.

The American's performance in that very last eight match should have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a victory that only seemed uncertain for moments towards the very end, when the American had saved a couple match points and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo looked well-balanced during the rallies, with Fritz creating plenty of chances to break. But Djokovic rescued break point after break point, extending the streak to the point of agony. When Fritz finally did claim one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately played a terrible game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish secondary to the main contest and forced him to use far too much energy to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to the sky. He prolonged the contest two times on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, I didn’t think, only a consequence of having to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The contest was fairly compelling proof that the American is not good enough to defeat any form of Djokovic, that lost to the Spaniard in the following match and did not particularly appeared like he believed he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers anymore, but has acquired enough experience and tactical know-how to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The problem is those who were anticipating the American to win, 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 circuit regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful voice in media sessions, more so than virtually anyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, willing to not only express his emotions or the strategy he believed decided a contest, but explain it. That he should shoulder the majority of the blame for America not spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick seems unfair. (Now that the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, perhaps they can divide that burden.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Division

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I fail to do it,” Fritz told an interviewer in June of winning a grand slam. I hope he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable empire is actually highly unlikely for all other players. {