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I have a few thoughts regarding that comments delivered by the sports network broadcaster a well-known announcer following the Serbian champion's victory over Taylor Fritz during the US Open quarter-finals. Look – Fritz is American, Fowler is American – and athletic competitions often lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of disappointment was appropriate. Rather, he invoked the ongoing drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them has won a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all enjoy a narrative, myself included. But come on. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, force of nature the Spanish star was looming in the next round, who Fritz has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d someway survived that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him Fritz had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven major titles (and Alcaraz went on to thrash a tired Serbian in the next round). Fritz said in press after the loss that he in fact liked his draw, because it offered the chance to beat the top three competitors in the world back-to-back. Fritz is well justified to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But going into that Serbian quarter-final what other person in their right mind had the drought of American champions on the brain?

The American star's weaker delivery the sole barrier standing in her way and consistent victories

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked fourth in the global rankings starting this week’s year-end championships and has secured his previous six matches over No 3 the German with increasing ease. It's likely he might take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that is as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class delivery and powerful strength on both forehand and reverse side are more than adequate to dispose of the majority of rivals on the ATP tour. Against the handful of generational talents, though, he is often helpless. The past few years has witnessed the curious emergence of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless cover the court with the alarming speed and grace of smaller men. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the other player was controlling, and hitting a drop shot against him is typically a safe bet. That serves as a quite harsh limitation on his potential.

The American has made a number of significant, unexpected advancements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded to No 4 – and held the spot. But the next leap, 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 the commentator thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the ongoing slump of American men lifting grand slams when he had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

The American star made a personal best advancement to the Wimbledon last four in July.

Fritz’s performance in that exact last eight match ought to have been enough of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a victory that only seemed tenuous for brief periods towards the conclusion, when the American had survived a couple championship opportunities and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the rallies, with Fritz creating plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued break point after break point, extending the run to the brink of agony. When he finally did claim a single of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a terrible game to lose his own serve once more; Djokovic had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the main contest and compelled him to expend far too much energy to prevail. Facing match points in the last game, Fritz’s first serve sailed to heaven. He extended the match two times on his backup delivery, but ultimately committed two errors. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, only a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The contest was quite compelling proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to beat any version of the Serbian, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the following match and did not especially appeared like he believed he could triumph. This is absolutely fine – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has developed enough knowledge and tactical know-how to compensate for a significant portion of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were anticipating the American to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was yet to accomplished anything that indicated he would.

The American is an asset to the tour regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, exceeding almost anyone on the men's tour aside from the Russian star, willing to not just express how he feels or the strategy he felt decided a match, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for the United States failing to produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unfair. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the standings, perhaps they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably think about it indefinitely if I fail to accomplish it,” the American told an interviewer in June of claiming a grand slam. I hope he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that objective, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is in fact extremely improbable for everybody else. {