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I have some thoughts regarding that remarks delivered by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's victory over Taylor Fritz during the US Open quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents the United States, Fowler is American – and athletic competitions frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of disappointment was appropriate. Instead, Fowler brought up the continued absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: none of them has won a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all love a narrative, myself included. But really. Even if Fritz had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature the Spanish star was waiting 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 the Italian, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the last seven grand slams (and Alcaraz went on to thrash a tired Serbian in the next round). Fritz said in press following his defeat that he actually preferred his draw, because it presented the opportunity to beat the top three players in the world back-to-back. Fritz is well within his right to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is meant to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian quarter-final what other person sensibly had the lack of US winners in mind?

Coco Gauff’s weaker delivery the sole barrier between her and consistent victories

The American, 28, is placed number four in the world entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his last six encounters over No 3 the German with increasing ease. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that right now, that’s as far as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s elite serve and powerful power on each forehand and backhand are sufficiently adequate to defeat the majority of opponents on the ATP tour. When facing the handful of generational talents, however, Fritz is often overmatched. The past few seasons has seen the interesting rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the alarming quickness and fluidity of smaller men. He is six-foot-five and looks it. His movement is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and playing a soft shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty severe restriction on his upside.

The American has made a several dramatic, improbable improvements 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 sniffing the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly surged up to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the ongoing slump of American men winning grand slams when Fritz had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

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

Fritz’s play in that exact quarter-final should have been enough of an sign. The Serbian won in four rounds, a win that only seemed uncertain for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had saved a few match points and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair looked well-balanced during the rallies, with the American earning plenty of chances to break. But Djokovic saved break point after break point, extending the run to the brink of agony. When he eventually did claim a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he promptly produced a terrible game to drop serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle secondary to the main contest and forced him to expend far too much effort to prevail. Facing match points in the last game, Fritz’s first serve floated to heaven. He extended the match twice on his second serve, but ultimately committed two errors. It wasn’t a choke, I didn’t think, just a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The contest was quite compelling evidence that the American is not good enough to defeat any form of the Serbian, who lost to the Spaniard in the following match and did not especially seem like he believed he could win. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the best player ever, and might not be at the height of his athletic abilities anymore, but has acquired enough experience and tactical know-how to compensate for a significant portion of the drop-off. The issue is those who were anticipating the American to win, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a patient, thoughtful presence in media sessions, exceeding virtually anyone on the men's tour aside from the Russian star, willing to not just express how he feels or the strategy he felt decided a contest, but explain it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America not produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Division

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I would likely dwell on it indefinitely if I fail to accomplish it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in the summer of winning a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t achieve that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable reign is actually extremely improbable for all other players. {