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I have a few thoughts about the comments made by ESPN commentator a well-known announcer after the Serbian champion's win over the American player in the US Open last eight. Consider – the athlete represents American, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of letdown was understandable. Rather, he invoked the continued drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all enjoy a storyline, myself included. But come on. Even if the American had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the next round, who Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also divided the previous seven grand slams (plus Alcaraz went on to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the next round). He said in press after the loss that he actually preferred his draw, because it offered the opportunity to defeat the top three players in the world in succession. Fritz is more than within his right to aspire to the accomplishment; an competitor is meant to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian quarter-final who else in their right mind had the drought of American champions in mind?

The American star's second serve the only thing between her and consistent victories

Fritz, 28, is placed fourth in the world entering the upcoming year-end championships and has won his previous six encounters over No 3 Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. It's likely he might claim that position for himself in the coming years. But evidently that right now, that is as high as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of ranking points away. His elite serve and powerful strength on each forehand and reverse side are more than enough to dispose of most rivals on the professional circuit. Against the select few generational talents, however, Fritz is often helpless. The past few seasons has seen the curious emergence of tall, gangly athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the alarming speed and fluidity of smaller players. He is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His footwork is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and playing a drop shot versus him is typically a reliable tactic. That acts as a quite harsh limitation on his potential.

Fritz has made a number of dramatic, improbable advancements throughout his career. Early on of the ten-year period, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and beating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the continuing drought of American men winning grand slams when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the respect for the magnitude of the task too little.

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

The American's performance in that exact quarter-final ought to have been sufficient 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 couple championship opportunities and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The duo appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with the American creating plenty of opportunities to break. But the champion saved break point after service break opportunity, prolonging the run to the brink of frustration. When Fritz eventually did convert a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately played a terrible service game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to expend excessive energy to prevail. Down match points in the final game, his primary delivery floated to the sky. He extended the match two times on his backup delivery, but finally double-faulted. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, just a result of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The match was fairly compelling evidence that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of Djokovic, who lost to Alcaraz in the next round and did not especially seem like he believed he could triumph. This is perfectly acceptable – Djokovic is the best player ever, and may not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has acquired sufficient knowledge and tactical know-how to make up for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is the individuals who were expecting the American to prevail, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was yet to done anything that suggested he would.

The American is an valuable contributor to the tour nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective voice in media sessions, exceeding almost everyone on the men's tour aside from Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not just say his emotions or the strategy he believed decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for America not spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Now that the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, perhaps they can divide that burden.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Division

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

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I don’t accomplish it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in June of claiming a major. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not achieve that objective, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying reign is actually extremely unlikely for all other players. {