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I possess a few opinions regarding that remarks delivered by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler after Novak Djokovic's victory over the American player during the US Open quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents the United States, Fowler is from the US – and sports often encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of disappointment was understandable. Rather, Fowler brought up the continued drought of American men at the majors: not one of them has won a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all enjoy a narrative, me too. But really. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the first time, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the following match, whom Fritz has never defeated in an official match. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven major titles (plus the Spaniard went on to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). Fritz stated in press following his defeat that he actually preferred his path, because it presented the opportunity to beat the three best players in the sport in succession. He is well within his right to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final what other person sensibly had the drought of US winners in mind?

The American star's weaker delivery the only thing between her and sustained success

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the global rankings starting the upcoming year-end championships and has won his previous six matches over No 3 Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the coming years. But evidently that at present, that’s as far as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard sit a chasm of performance metrics away. His elite delivery and concussive strength on both forehand and reverse side are more than enough to defeat most rivals on the ATP tour. Against the select few generational talents, however, he is frequently helpless. The past few seasons has witnessed the curious rise of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless move around with the alarming quickness and fluidity of smaller men. He is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His footwork is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the opponent was controlling, and playing a soft shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty severe limitation on his upside.

Fritz has made a number of significant, improbable advancements over the years. Early on of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the lower end of the top 30. Two years later, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly surged up to fourth place – and maintained the spot. But the subsequent step, competing against and beating legendary figures like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a declining Serbian, is the toughest of all. What was Fowler thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the continuing slump of American men winning major titles when Fritz had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the appreciation for the magnitude of the task too little.

Taylor Fritz made a career-best run to the All England Club last four in July.

The American's play in that very quarter-final should have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic won in four rounds, a win that only seemed tenuous for brief periods towards the conclusion, when the American had saved a few match points and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The duo appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American earning plenty of opportunities to break. But Djokovic rescued service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the streak to the point of agony. When Fritz eventually did claim one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a horrendous game to drop serve once more; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle secondary to the main contest and compelled him to use excessive energy to win it. Facing set points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to heaven. He extended the contest two times on his backup delivery, but finally double-faulted. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, only a consequence of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was quite compelling evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of the Serbian, that lost to Alcaraz in the following match and never especially seem like he believed he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his athletic abilities now, but has developed sufficient experience and strategic intelligence to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The problem is those who were expecting Fritz to prevail, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was had not done anything that suggested he could.

The American is an valuable contributor to the tour regardless. He’s a patient, thoughtful voice in media sessions, exceeding virtually everyone on the men's tour except for the Russian star, willing to not just express his emotions or the tactic he believed decided a contest, but explain it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the responsibility for America not produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely dwell on it indefinitely if I don’t do it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in June of claiming a major. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t achieve that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is in fact extremely improbable for all other players. {