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I have some opinions about the remarks made by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler after the Serbian champion's victory over the American player during the New York major last eight. Consider – Fritz is American, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions often encourage nationalism. A little bit of disappointment was understandable. Instead, he brought up the ongoing absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all enjoy a storyline, me too. But come on. Suppose Fritz had beaten the legend for the first time, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the next round, who he has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, versus him the American had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven major titles (and Alcaraz proceeded to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). He said in press following his defeat that he in fact liked his path, because it presented the chance to defeat the three best competitors in the world back-to-back. Fritz is more than within his right to aspire to the achievement; an athlete is meant to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian last eight match who else sensibly had the drought of American champions on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s weaker delivery the only thing standing in her way and consistent victories

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked number four in the global rankings starting this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has won his previous six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that right now, that is as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of ranking points away. His elite delivery and concussive power on both forehand and backhand are sufficiently adequate to dispose of most opponents on the ATP tour. When facing the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, however, he is often helpless. The past few seasons has witnessed the interesting rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the alarming quickness and fluidity of smaller players. Fritz is six-foot-five and appears that way. His footwork is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he seldom win a rally that the opponent was dictating, and hitting a soft shot versus him is usually a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite harsh restriction on his upside.

The American has achieved a number of dramatic, improbable advancements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was hovering around the bottom of the world's best thirty. 24 months later, he was approaching the top 10. Last year, he suddenly exploded up to fourth place – and maintained the spot. But the next leap, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a declining Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the ongoing slump of US male players winning major titles when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the respect for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

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

Fritz’s performance in that very quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an indication. The Serbian won in four sets, a win that only felt uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had saved a few championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with the American earning plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued service break opportunity after service break opportunity, prolonging the streak to the brink of frustration. When he finally did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a terrible game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had drawn him into a battle secondary to the real battle and compelled him to use excessive energy to prevail. Facing match points in the last game, his primary delivery sailed to heaven. He extended the contest two times on his second serve, but finally committed two errors. It was not a choke, I didn’t think, only a result of having to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The contest was quite compelling evidence that the American is not good enough to beat any version of Djokovic, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and did not especially seem like he thought he could win. This is absolutely fine – Djokovic is the best player ever, and might not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has developed enough knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the drop-off. The problem is those who were expecting Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was had not accomplished anything that indicated he could.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit regardless. He’s a patient, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding virtually anyone on the men's tour aside from Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not only express how he feels or the tactic he believed decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for the United States failing to spawn a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Since Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can divide that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

American legend Group

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

Swedish icon Group

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

“I’d probably think about it forever if I don’t do it,” Fritz informed a journalist in the summer of claiming a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not fulfill that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable empire is actually highly improbable for all other players. {