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I have some opinions about the comments made by ESPN commentator a well-known announcer following Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz in the New York major last eight. Look – the athlete represents American, Fowler is American – and sports frequently lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of letdown was appropriate. Instead, he invoked the continued drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

Everyone love a narrative, me too. But really. Even if Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the first time, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the following match, who Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, versus him the American had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the last seven grand slams (and Alcaraz proceeded to defeat a fatigued Djokovic in the subsequent match). He said in press following his defeat that he in fact preferred his path, because it offered the opportunity to beat the top three players in the world in succession. Fritz is more than justified to aim for the achievement; an athlete is meant to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic quarter-final what other person sensibly had the drought of US winners in mind?

The American star's weaker delivery the sole barrier standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, 28, is ranked number four in the world starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six matches over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. It's likely he might claim that position for himself in the future. But evidently that right now, that is as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of ranking points away. His elite delivery and powerful strength on both front side and backhand are more than adequate to defeat the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. Against the handful of generational talents, however, Fritz is frequently helpless. The past few seasons has witnessed the curious rise of lanky, towering players who can nevertheless move around with the alarming speed and grace of smaller players. Fritz is six-foot-five and appears that way. His footwork is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the other player was dictating, and hitting a drop shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a quite severe restriction on his potential.

Fritz has achieved a number of dramatic, unexpected advancements throughout his career. Early on of the decade, he was hovering around the lower end of the world's best thirty. 24 months later, he was sniffing the elite ten. Last year, he suddenly surged to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and beating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and including a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What was Fowler have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the ongoing slump of US male players lifting grand slams when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

The American star made a career-best run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

The American's play in that very quarter-final should have been enough of an indication. The Serbian won in four rounds, a win that only seemed uncertain for moments towards the very end, when the American had saved a couple championship opportunities and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with Fritz earning plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued break point after service break opportunity, extending the streak to the brink of agony. When he finally did convert one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a terrible game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had drawn him into a skirmish secondary to the real battle and compelled him to expend far too much energy to win it. Facing set points in the last game, Fritz’s first serve sailed to the sky. He extended the contest two times on his backup delivery, but finally committed two errors. It was not a collapse, I didn’t think, only a result of having to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The match was quite compelling evidence that Fritz is not good enough to beat any form of the Serbian, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and never particularly appeared like he believed he could triumph. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the height of his athletic abilities now, 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 anticipating Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that indicated he could.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the tour regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, exceeding almost anyone on the ATP aside from Daniil Medvedev, willing to not just say his emotions or the tactic he felt determined a match, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for the United States not spawn a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unfair. (Now that the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can divide that load.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I fail to accomplish it,” Fritz told an interviewer in June of winning a major. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t achieve that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying reign is in fact extremely improbable for all other players. {