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I possess a few opinions about the comments made by ESPN commentator a well-known announcer after Novak Djokovic's victory over the American player in the New York major quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents American, Fowler is American – and sports frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some letdown was understandable. Rather, Fowler brought up the continued absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all love a storyline, me too. But really. Even if Fritz defeated the legend for the first time, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, whom he has never defeated in an official match. And had he somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, versus him the American had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also divided the last seven grand slams (and the Spaniard proceeded to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the subsequent match). Fritz said in press following his defeat that he in fact preferred his draw, because it offered the opportunity to beat the top three competitors in the sport back-to-back. He is more than justified to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But entering that Serbian last eight match 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 number four in the global rankings entering this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has won his last six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that is as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a chasm of performance metrics away. His top-class serve and powerful strength on each front side and backhand are more than enough to dispose of most opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the select few generational talents, however, Fritz is frequently helpless. The past few years has seen the curious emergence of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless move around with the surprising speed and grace of much shorter players. He is 6ft 5ins 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 drop shot against him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a quite harsh restriction on his potential.

Fritz has made a number of significant, improbable advancements over the years. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the lower end of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the elite ten. Last year, he unexpectedly surged to fourth place – and maintained the spot. But the next leap, competing against and beating legendary figures like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a declining Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing drought of US male players lifting major titles when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just excessive and the appreciation for the magnitude of the challenge too little.

Taylor Fritz achieved a career-best advancement to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

Fritz’s performance in that exact quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an sign. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a win that only seemed uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had saved a few match points and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The duo looked evenly matched during the exchanges, with the American creating numerous chances to break. But the champion rescued service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the run to the brink of frustration. When he finally did claim one of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately played a horrendous service game to drop 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 the sky. He prolonged the contest twice on his second serve, but finally double-faulted. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, just a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The contest was quite ironclad proof that the American is not good enough to beat any version of Djokovic, who lost to the Spaniard in the following match and did not particularly seem like he believed he could win. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has developed sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for quite a bit of the decline. The issue is those who were anticipating Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was yet to accomplished anything that indicated he would.

The American is an asset to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a patient, thoughtful presence in press conferences, more so than virtually everyone on the ATP aside from the Russian star, prepared to not only say his emotions or the strategy he felt determined a contest, but explain 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. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, maybe they can divide that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

American legend Division

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

Swedish icon Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I would likely think about it forever if I don’t accomplish it,” Fritz told a journalist in the summer of winning a major. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not fulfill that objective, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is actually extremely improbable for all other players. {