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I have some opinions about that remarks delivered by the sports network commentator a well-known announcer following the Serbian champion's win over the American player during the US Open last eight. Consider – the athlete represents the United States, the commentator is American – and athletic competitions often lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of disappointment would have been appropriate. Rather, he invoked the continued drought of US male players at the majors: none of them had lifted a title 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. Even if the American defeated Djokovic for the first time, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the following match, who he has never defeated in an official match. And if he’d somehow survived that, it would have been title holder the Italian, against whom Fritz had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven major titles (and the Spaniard went on to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the subsequent match). He stated in press following his defeat that he actually liked his draw, because it offered the opportunity to defeat the top three competitors in the world back-to-back. He is more than justified to aim for the achievement; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic 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 sustained success

Fritz, 28, is placed fourth in the global rankings entering this week’s year-end championships and has secured his previous six encounters over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. It's likely he might claim that position for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that at present, that is as far as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a vast gap of ranking points away. His top-class delivery and powerful power on both forehand and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to dispose of the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. Against the handful of generational talents, though, Fritz is frequently overmatched. The past few seasons has seen the curious emergence of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and fluidity of smaller players. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His footwork is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the opponent was controlling, and playing a drop shot versus him is typically a safe bet. That serves as a quite harsh limitation on his upside.

The American has achieved a number of significant, improbable advancements over the years. Early on of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a declining Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What was Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the continuing slump of American men lifting grand slams when Fritz had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply too much and the respect for the difficulty of the task too little.

The American star achieved a personal best run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

The American's play in that exact last eight match should have been enough of an sign. The Serbian triumphed in four sets, a victory that only felt tenuous for brief periods towards the conclusion, when Fritz had survived a couple championship opportunities and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair looked well-balanced during the exchanges, with Fritz creating numerous chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued break point after service break opportunity, extending the run to the brink of agony. When he eventually did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a horrendous service game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to use far too much effort to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, his primary delivery floated to the sky. He prolonged the contest twice on his backup delivery, but finally double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, only a result of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was quite compelling proof that the American is not good enough to defeat any version of Djokovic, that was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and never particularly seem like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely acceptable – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the height of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired sufficient experience and strategic intelligence to make up for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is the individuals who were expecting the American to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was yet to accomplished anything that indicated he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the tour nonetheless. He’s a patient, thoughtful voice in media sessions, exceeding almost everyone on the men's tour aside from the Russian star, willing to not just express his emotions or the tactic he believed determined a contest, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the responsibility for the United States not spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Now that Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the standings, maybe they can divide that load.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Group

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I would likely dwell on it indefinitely if I don’t do it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in June of claiming a grand slam. I hope he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable empire is in fact extremely unlikely for all other players. {