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I have some opinions regarding that remarks made by the sports network commentator a well-known announcer after the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz during the US Open last eight. Consider – the athlete represents the United States, Fowler is from the US – and sports frequently lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of letdown was understandable. Rather, he invoked the ongoing absence of American men at the majors: not one of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the competition.

We all love a narrative, myself included. But really. Suppose Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the first time, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the following match, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d somehow survived that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, against whom the American had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also split the previous seven major titles (and the Spaniard proceeded to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the subsequent match). Fritz stated in press after the loss that he in fact preferred his draw, because it presented the opportunity to beat the three best competitors in the sport in succession. Fritz is well within his right to aim for the achievement; an competitor is meant to believe 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 weaker delivery the sole barrier standing in her way and consistent victories

The American, 28, is ranked number four in the global rankings starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his last six matches over No 3 Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class delivery and powerful power on each forehand and reverse side are more than adequate to defeat the majority of rivals on the ATP tour. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, though, Fritz is frequently helpless. The past few seasons has seen the interesting emergence of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless move around with the alarming quickness and grace of much shorter men. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. 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 controlling, and hitting a drop shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a quite harsh restriction on his potential.

Fritz has made a number of significant, improbable improvements throughout his career. Early on of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the world's best thirty. Two years later, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly surged to No 4 – and held the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and beating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a declining Serbian, is the toughest of all. What was the commentator have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the ongoing slump of American men winning grand slams when he had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply too much and the respect for the magnitude of the task insufficient.

The American star achieved a career-best advancement to the Wimbledon last four in the summer.

The American's play in that very last eight match should have been sufficient of an indication. The Serbian won in four rounds, a victory that only seemed tenuous for brief periods towards the conclusion, when Fritz had saved a few match points and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo looked evenly matched during the rallies, with Fritz creating numerous chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the streak to the brink of agony. When Fritz finally did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately played a horrendous game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish secondary to the real battle and compelled him to expend far too much effort to win it. Down match points in the final game, his first serve floated to the sky. He prolonged the match two times on his second serve, but finally double-faulted. It was not a choke, in my opinion, just a consequence of having to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The contest was quite compelling proof that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to defeat any version of Djokovic, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and never particularly seem like he believed he could triumph. This is absolutely acceptable – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the height of his physical powers now, but has acquired sufficient experience and strategic intelligence to compensate for quite a bit of the drop-off. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating the American to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was yet to accomplished anything that suggested he would.

The American is an valuable contributor to the tour regardless. He’s a patient, reflective presence in media sessions, exceeding virtually everyone on the ATP aside from the Russian star, prepared to not just express his emotions or the tactic he believed decided a match, but clarify it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America not produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist feels unjust. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, maybe they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Division

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

“I’d probably think about it indefinitely if I don’t do it,” Fritz informed a journalist in the summer of winning a major. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t achieve that goal, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying reign is actually extremely unlikely for everybody else. {