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I have some thoughts regarding that comments made by ESPN broadcaster a well-known announcer after the Serbian champion's win over the American player during the US Open last eight. Consider – Fritz is American, Fowler is American – and sports often encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown would have been understandable. Instead, Fowler brought up the ongoing absence of US male players at the majors: not one of them has won a title since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all enjoy a narrative, me too. But come on. Suppose Fritz defeated Djokovic for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was looming in the following match, who he has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, versus him the American had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also divided the last seven major titles (plus the Spaniard proceeded to defeat a fatigued Djokovic in the subsequent match). Fritz stated in press following his defeat that he in fact liked his draw, because it presented the chance to beat the top three players in the sport in succession. Fritz is well justified to aim for the accomplishment; an athlete is meant to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic last eight match who else sensibly had the lack of US winners on the brain?

The American star's weaker delivery the sole barrier between her and consistent victories

Fritz, 28, is ranked number four in the world entering the upcoming year-end championships and has secured his previous six encounters over No 3 the German with growing comfort. It's likely he could claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as high as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a vast gap of ranking points away. His elite serve and powerful power on each forehand and reverse side are sufficiently enough to defeat most opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, Fritz is frequently helpless. The last several years has seen the interesting emergence of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless move around with the surprising speed and grace of smaller players. Fritz is six-foot-five and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he seldom win a rally that the other player was dictating, and playing a soft shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That acts as a pretty severe restriction on his potential.

Fritz has achieved 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. Two years later, he was approaching the elite ten. Last year, he unexpectedly surged to No 4 – and held the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and beating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the ongoing drought of US male players lifting grand slams when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the respect for the difficulty of the task too little.

Taylor Fritz made a personal best run to the All England Club semi-finals in the summer.

The American's performance in that exact last eight match should have been enough of an indication. Djokovic won in four rounds, a win that only seemed uncertain for moments towards the conclusion, when the American had survived a few championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with the American creating plenty of chances to break. But Djokovic saved break point after service break opportunity, extending the run to the brink of agony. When Fritz finally did claim one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately played a terrible service game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a battle secondary to the real battle and forced him to use excessive effort to win it. Facing set points in the final game, his first serve floated to heaven. He extended the contest twice on his second serve, but ultimately committed two errors. It was not a collapse, I didn’t think, only a result of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The contest was fairly ironclad evidence that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to beat any form of Djokovic, who was defeated by Alcaraz in the following match and did not especially seem like he believed he could win. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his athletic abilities now, but has developed sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to make up for a significant portion of the drop-off. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to win, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was had not accomplished anything that indicated he could.

The American is an valuable contributor to the tour regardless. He’s a patient, reflective presence in media sessions, more so than virtually everyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, willing to not only express his emotions or the tactic he felt decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for the United States not spawn a male major champion since the last American titlist seems unfair. (Now that Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, perhaps they can divide that burden.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Division

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

Bjorn Borg Group

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

“I would likely think about it indefinitely if I don’t accomplish it,” the American told a journalist in June of winning a grand slam. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is in fact highly unlikely for all other players. {