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I possess a few thoughts about the comments delivered by ESPN broadcaster a well-known announcer following the Serbian champion's win over the American player during the New York major last eight. Look – Fritz is American, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. Some letdown was appropriate. Rather, he invoked the continued drought of American men at grand slam tournaments: not one of them has won a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the competition.

Everyone love a storyline, myself included. But come on. Suppose the American defeated Djokovic for the first time, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, whom he has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And had he someway survived that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven major titles (and Alcaraz went on to defeat a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz stated in post-match interviews following his defeat that he actually preferred his path, because it offered the chance to beat the three best players in the world back-to-back. Fritz is more than within his right to aim for the achievement; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Serbian quarter-final who else in their right mind had the drought of US winners in mind?

The American star's second serve the only thing between her and sustained success

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked fourth in the global rankings starting this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has won his previous six encounters over No 3 the German with growing comfort. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that at present, that is as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class serve and powerful strength on both forehand and backhand are sufficiently enough to dispose of most opponents on the professional circuit. Against the select few generational talents, however, Fritz is often overmatched. The last several seasons has witnessed the curious rise of lanky, towering athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising speed and grace of smaller players. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the other player was dictating, and playing a soft shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite harsh restriction on his potential.

Fritz has achieved a several dramatic, unexpected advancements throughout his career. Early on of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. 24 months after, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded to fourth place – and maintained the spot. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and beating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, Sinner, and including a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could the commentator have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the ongoing drought of American men lifting grand slams when Fritz had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the appreciation for the magnitude of the challenge insufficient.

Taylor Fritz made a career-best advancement to the Wimbledon last four in July.

Fritz’s performance in that exact last eight match should have been enough of an sign. Djokovic won in four rounds, a victory that only felt uncertain for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had saved a couple match points and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair looked well-balanced during the rallies, with Fritz creating plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved break point after service break opportunity, prolonging the run to the brink of agony. When he eventually did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a terrible service game to drop serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to expend excessive effort to win it. Facing set points in the final game, his primary delivery sailed to heaven. He extended the match two times on his second serve, but finally double-faulted. It was not a choke, I didn’t think, only a result of needing to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The contest was fairly ironclad evidence that Fritz is not good enough to defeat any version of the Serbian, that was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and did not particularly appeared like he believed he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired sufficient experience and tactical know-how to make up for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is those who were anticipating Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that indicated he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the tour nonetheless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, more so than virtually anyone on the ATP aside from the Russian star, prepared to not just express how he feels or the strategy he believed determined a contest, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for America failing to produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist feels unjust. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Group

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

Swedish icon Division

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I would likely dwell on it forever if I fail to accomplish it,” the American told an interviewer in the summer of winning a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not achieve that goal, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable empire is in fact highly unlikely for everybody else. {