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I have a few thoughts about the remarks made by the sports network commentator a well-known announcer following the Serbian champion's victory over Taylor Fritz in the New York major quarter-finals. Consider – the athlete represents American, Fowler is American – and athletic competitions frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some letdown was appropriate. Instead, he invoked the continued drought of US male players at the majors: not one of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all enjoy a narrative, myself included. But really. Even if the American had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, whom he has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And had he somehow survived that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the last seven major titles (and the Spaniard proceeded to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). Fritz said in press following his defeat that he in fact preferred his draw, because it presented the opportunity to beat the top three players in the world back-to-back. Fritz is well justified to aspire to the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic last eight match who else in their right mind had the drought of US winners on the brain?

The American star's weaker delivery the sole barrier between her and consistent victories

Fritz, 28, is ranked fourth in the world entering the upcoming year-end championships and has secured his previous six encounters over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that at present, that is as high as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s elite delivery and concussive power on each front side and reverse side are more than adequate to defeat the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the select few generational talents, however, Fritz is often overmatched. The past few seasons has seen the curious emergence of tall, gangly athletes who can nonetheless move around with the surprising speed and fluidity of much shorter players. He is six-foot-five and appears that way. His footwork is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the other player was dictating, and hitting a soft shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That acts as a pretty severe restriction on his potential.

The American has achieved a number of significant, unexpected improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. Two years after, he was approaching the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded up to fourth place – and maintained the spot. But the next leap, competing against and defeating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a declining Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could the commentator thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the ongoing slump of US male players lifting grand slams when Fritz had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

Taylor Fritz made a personal best advancement to the All England Club semi-finals in July.

Fritz’s performance in that very quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an sign. Djokovic triumphed in four rounds, 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 the American earning plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved break point after break point, extending the streak to the point of agony. When he eventually did convert one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a terrible game to drop serve once more; Djokovic had drawn him into a skirmish secondary to the main contest and compelled him to expend excessive effort to win it. Down set points in the last game, his primary delivery floated to heaven. He prolonged the contest two times on his second serve, but finally committed two errors. It was not a choke, I didn’t think, only a consequence of having to hit too many second serves.

The contest was quite ironclad evidence that the American is not good enough to beat any form of Djokovic, who lost to Alcaraz in the next round and never especially appeared like he believed he could win. This is absolutely fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has developed sufficient experience and tactical know-how to compensate for quite a bit of the decline. The issue is those who were anticipating Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that suggested he could.

The American is an asset to the tour nonetheless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in media sessions, exceeding almost everyone on the men's tour except for the Russian star, prepared to not only say how he feels or the strategy he believed determined a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for America not spawn a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unfair. (Now that the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

American legend Division

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Division

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

“I would likely dwell on it forever if I don’t accomplish it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in the summer of claiming a major. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not fulfill that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying reign is in fact highly improbable for everybody else. {