🔗 Share this article

I possess some opinions about the comments delivered by ESPN commentator a well-known announcer following the Serbian champion's win over the American player in the US Open quarter-finals. Consider – the athlete represents the United States, the commentator is from the US – and sports frequently encourage nationalism. A little bit of disappointment would have been appropriate. Rather, he invoked the ongoing absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none 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 storyline, myself included. But come on. Suppose Fritz defeated the legend for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, whom he has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, against whom Fritz had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also split the previous seven major titles (and the Spaniard went on to defeat a tired Serbian in the next round). Fritz said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he in fact liked his draw, because it offered the opportunity to defeat the three best players in the sport back-to-back. He is more than justified to aim for the accomplishment; an athlete is meant to have faith in themselves. But going into that Serbian last eight match what other person in their right mind had the drought of US winners on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s weaker delivery the sole barrier between her and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is placed fourth in the world starting this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has won his last six matches over No 3 Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. It's likely he could claim that position for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that at present, that’s as far as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of ranking points away. His elite delivery and concussive power on each forehand and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to defeat most opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, he is often overmatched. The last several seasons has witnessed the curious rise of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and grace of much shorter players. He is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His footwork is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the other player was dictating, and playing a drop shot versus him is usually a reliable tactic. That serves as a pretty harsh limitation on his potential.

The American has made a number of significant, improbable advancements throughout his career. Early on of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the bottom of the world's best thirty. 24 months after, he was sniffing the elite ten. Last year, he suddenly exploded to fourth place – and held the spot. But the next leap, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a declining Serbian, is the toughest of all. What was the commentator have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the ongoing drought of US male players lifting major titles when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

Taylor Fritz made a career-best advancement to the Wimbledon last four in July.

Fritz’s play in that very last eight match ought to have been enough of an sign. The Serbian won in four rounds, a win that only felt uncertain for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had survived a couple championship opportunities and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with the American creating numerous chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved service break opportunity after service break opportunity, extending the run to the point of frustration. When Fritz eventually did claim a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a horrendous service game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and forced him to use far too much energy to prevail. Facing match points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery sailed to heaven. He extended the contest two times on his backup delivery, but ultimately committed two errors. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, just a result of needing to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The contest was quite compelling proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to beat any form of Djokovic, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and did not especially seem like he believed he could win. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the peak of his physical powers anymore, but has developed sufficient experience and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were expecting the American to prevail, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that indicated he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective voice in press conferences, exceeding almost anyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not only say how he feels or the tactic he felt decided a match, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for the United States failing to spawn a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unjust. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the standings, perhaps they can divide that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Group

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

Bjorn Borg Group

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely think about it indefinitely if I don’t accomplish it,” Fritz told an interviewer in June of claiming a major. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not achieve that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable reign is actually extremely unlikely for everybody else. {