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I have a few thoughts about the remarks made by the sports network broadcaster Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz during the New York major last eight. Consider – Fritz is American, the commentator is American – and athletic competitions often encourage patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment would have been understandable. Rather, Fowler brought up the ongoing drought of American men at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the tournament.

Everyone enjoy a storyline, myself included. But really. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the first time, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the next round, who he has never defeated in an official match. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him the American had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the last seven major titles (and the Spaniard went on to thrash a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). He stated in press following his defeat that he actually preferred his path, because it presented the chance to beat the three best players in the sport back-to-back. He is more than within his right to aim for the accomplishment; an athlete is supposed to believe in themselves. But going into that Serbian last eight match what other person sensibly had the drought of American champions in mind?

The American star's weaker delivery the only thing standing in her way and consistent victories

The American, twenty-eight, is placed fourth in the world entering this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has won his previous six matches over No 3 the German with increasing ease. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the coming years. But evidently that right now, that is as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of performance metrics away. Fritz’s elite serve and concussive power on both front side and backhand are more than adequate to defeat the majority of rivals on the ATP tour. When facing the select few generational talents, however, he is often helpless. The past few years has seen the curious emergence of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless move around with the surprising speed and grace of much shorter 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 win a rally that the opponent was dictating, and playing a soft shot versus him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a pretty harsh restriction on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a several significant, unexpected improvements over the years. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. 24 months after, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly surged up to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating legendary figures like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a declining Djokovic, is the highest of all. What was Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, 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 lifting major titles when Fritz had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply too much and the respect for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

Taylor Fritz achieved a career-best run to the All England Club semi-finals in the summer.

The American's performance in that very last eight match should have been sufficient of an indication. The Serbian triumphed in four rounds, a victory that only felt tenuous for moments towards the conclusion, when the American had saved a few match points and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The duo appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with Fritz creating numerous chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued break point after break point, prolonging the run to the brink of agony. When Fritz eventually did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a horrendous service game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to use excessive energy to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to heaven. He extended the contest two times on his second serve, but finally committed two errors. It was not a choke, in my opinion, just a result of needing to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was quite compelling evidence that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to beat any form of Djokovic, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and did not particularly appeared like he thought he could win. This is absolutely fine – Djokovic is the best player ever, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has acquired enough knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating the American to prevail, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was had not accomplished anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an asset to the tour nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective voice in press conferences, exceeding virtually everyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, willing to not just say his emotions or the strategy he believed determined a contest, but explain it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the blame for the United States failing to spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the standings, perhaps they can share that load.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I don’t do it,” the American told an interviewer in the summer of claiming a grand slam. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he does not achieve that objective, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable reign is in fact highly unlikely for everybody else. {