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I possess a few thoughts about the comments delivered by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's victory over Taylor Fritz during the US Open last eight. Consider – Fritz is the United States, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. Some letdown would have been appropriate. Instead, Fowler invoked the ongoing drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them has won a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all love a narrative, myself included. But come on. Even if Fritz had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was looming in the next round, whom he has yet to beat in an official match. And had he someway survived that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, versus him the American had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the last seven grand slams (plus the Spaniard proceeded to thrash a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz said in press following his defeat that he in fact preferred his draw, because it offered the opportunity to beat the three best competitors in the sport in succession. Fritz is more than within his right to aspire to the achievement; an athlete is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian last eight match who else sensibly had the lack of American champions in mind?

The American star's second serve the only thing standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, 28, is placed fourth in the world starting this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that at present, that’s as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s elite serve and concussive strength on both front side and backhand are more than enough to dispose of the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the select few generational talents, though, he is often overmatched. The last several years has witnessed the curious rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nonetheless move around with the surprising speed and fluidity of smaller players. Fritz is six-foot-five and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the other player was controlling, and playing a drop shot versus him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite severe limitation on his potential.

The American has made a several significant, improbable improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the world's best thirty. Two years after, he was approaching the elite ten. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded up to fourth place – and held the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and beating legendary figures like Alcaraz, Sinner, and including a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What was the commentator thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the continuing drought of US male players winning major titles when he had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just too much and the appreciation for the magnitude of the challenge insufficient.

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

Fritz’s performance in that very quarter-final should have been enough of an indication. Djokovic won in four sets, a win that only felt tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had survived a couple championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with Fritz creating plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But the champion rescued service break opportunity after break point, extending the streak to the point of frustration. When Fritz eventually did claim one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a horrendous game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish secondary to the real battle and forced him to expend excessive energy to win it. Down match points in the last game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to heaven. He prolonged the contest twice on his second serve, but ultimately committed two errors. It was not a choke, I didn’t think, just a result of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The match was fairly ironclad evidence that Fritz is not good enough to defeat any form of the Serbian, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and never especially appeared like he thought he could win. This is absolutely fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the height of his athletic abilities now, but has developed sufficient experience and strategic intelligence to compensate for quite a bit 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 accomplished anything that indicated he could.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit regardless. He’s a patient, reflective voice in media sessions, more so than virtually everyone on the ATP aside from Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not just express how he feels or the strategy he felt decided a match, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the responsibility for America not produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist seems unfair. (Now that Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably think about it forever if I fail to accomplish it,” the American told a journalist in the summer of winning a major. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that objective, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is actually highly unlikely for everybody else. {