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I possess some opinions about the comments made by the sports network broadcaster a well-known announcer after Novak Djokovic's win over the American player in the US Open quarter-finals. Consider – the athlete represents American, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions often encourage nationalism. Some disappointment was understandable. Instead, Fowler invoked the ongoing drought of American men at grand slam tournaments: none of them has won a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all love a narrative, myself included. But really. Even if the American had beaten Djokovic for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was looming in the next round, who Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow survived that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, against whom Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the last seven major titles (plus Alcaraz went on to thrash a tired Serbian in the next round). Fritz said in post-match interviews after the loss that he actually liked his draw, because it offered the opportunity to beat the top three players in the sport in succession. He is well justified to aspire to the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian quarter-final who else sensibly had the drought of US winners on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the only thing standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, 28, is placed number four in the global rankings starting the upcoming year-end championships and has secured his previous six encounters over No 3 Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that is as high as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class serve and powerful power on each forehand and backhand are sufficiently adequate to defeat the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of generational talents, however, he is frequently helpless. The last several seasons has seen the interesting emergence of lanky, towering players who can nevertheless cover the court with the alarming quickness and fluidity of much shorter players. He is six-foot-five and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was controlling, and hitting a drop shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty severe limitation on his upside.

The American has achieved a several significant, unexpected improvements throughout his career. Early on of the decade, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. Two years after, he was approaching the elite ten. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded to No 4 – and maintained the spot. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and even a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What was Fowler thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the continuing slump of American men winning grand slams when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just excessive and the respect for the magnitude of the task too little.

The American star achieved a career-best run to the All England Club last four in the summer.

Fritz’s performance in that very quarter-final should have been sufficient of an sign. The Serbian won in four rounds, a victory that only seemed uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had saved a few championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair looked evenly matched during the rallies, with the American earning numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But the champion saved service break opportunity after service break opportunity, prolonging the run to the brink of agony. When Fritz finally did claim a single of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately played a horrendous service game to drop serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish secondary to the real battle and forced him to use far too much effort to win it. Facing set points in the last game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to heaven. He extended the contest two times on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a collapse, in my opinion, just a result of needing to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was quite ironclad proof that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to beat any version of the Serbian, that lost to the Spaniard in the following match and never particularly seem like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has acquired sufficient knowledge and tactical know-how to make up for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to win, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was had not accomplished anything that suggested he could.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the tour nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding almost everyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, willing to not just express how he feels or the tactic he felt determined a match, but explain it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for the United States not produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist seems unfair. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can divide that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

American legend Group

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

Bjorn Borg Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably think about it indefinitely if I don’t do it,” the American told a journalist in the summer of claiming a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable empire is actually extremely improbable for everybody else. {