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I have some opinions about that comments made by ESPN commentator a well-known announcer following Novak Djokovic's victory over Taylor Fritz during the New York major last eight. Look – the athlete represents American, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently encourage nationalism. A little bit of disappointment would have been understandable. Rather, Fowler invoked the continued drought of US male players at the majors: none of them had lifted a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all enjoy a narrative, me too. But really. Suppose Fritz defeated Djokovic for the first time, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the next round, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And had he somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also divided the previous seven grand slams (plus Alcaraz went on to thrash a tired Djokovic in the next round). He said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he actually liked his path, because it presented the chance to defeat the top three players in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is well justified to aspire to the achievement; an athlete is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic last eight match what other person in their right mind had the lack of American champions on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the only thing between her and consistent victories

The American, 28, is ranked fourth in the global rankings starting the upcoming year-end championships and has won his last six matches over No 3 the German with increasing ease. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that’s as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a vast gap of performance metrics away. Fritz’s top-class delivery and concussive strength on both forehand and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to defeat most opponents on the ATP tour. Against the handful of generational talents, however, Fritz is frequently overmatched. The past few seasons has witnessed the curious rise of tall, gangly players who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and grace of much shorter men. He is six-foot-five and appears that way. His movement is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and playing a soft shot against him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a pretty severe restriction on his potential.

The American has achieved a several dramatic, improbable advancements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the world's best thirty. Two years later, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and defeating legendary figures like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the continuing drought of US male players winning grand slams when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

Taylor Fritz achieved a personal best advancement to the Wimbledon last four in the summer.

The American's play in that very last eight match ought to have been enough of an indication. The Serbian triumphed in four sets, a win that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the very end, when Fritz had saved a couple championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with the American earning plenty of opportunities to break. But the champion saved service break opportunity after service break opportunity, prolonging the run to the point of agony. When Fritz finally did convert one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately played a horrendous game to lose his own serve once more; Djokovic had drawn him into a battle secondary to the real battle and forced him to expend far too much effort to win it. Down set points in the final game, his primary delivery floated to the sky. He extended the contest twice on his backup delivery, but finally committed two errors. It was not a choke, in my opinion, just a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly ironclad proof that Fritz is not good enough to defeat any version of the Serbian, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the following match and never especially appeared like he believed he could triumph. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has developed sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is those who were anticipating the American to win, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was yet to accomplished anything that suggested he could.

The American is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in press conferences, more so than virtually everyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not just say his emotions or the tactic he felt determined a contest, but explain it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America failing to produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist feels unfair. (Now that Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the rankings, perhaps they can divide that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Group

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

Bjorn Borg Group

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I don’t accomplish it,” Fritz informed a journalist in June of claiming a grand slam. I hope he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not achieve that objective, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable reign is in fact extremely unlikely for all other players. {