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I have a few opinions about the remarks made by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler after Novak Djokovic's victory over the American player during the US Open last eight. Look – Fritz is American, Fowler is from the US – and sports frequently encourage patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment would have been understandable. Rather, Fowler invoked the continued drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all love 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 following match, whom he has never defeated in an official match. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him the American had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also split the previous seven major titles (and Alcaraz went on to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz stated in post-match interviews after the loss that he in fact preferred his path, because it offered the chance to defeat the three best competitors in the world back-to-back. Fritz is well justified to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian last eight match who else in their right mind had the drought of US winners on the brain?

The American star's weaker delivery the only thing between her and consistent victories

Fritz, 28, is placed number four in the world entering the upcoming year-end championships and has won his previous six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that at present, that’s as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a chasm of performance metrics away. His top-class delivery and concussive power on each forehand and reverse side are more than adequate to dispose of most rivals on the professional circuit. When facing the select few generational talents, however, he is frequently overmatched. The past few years has witnessed the interesting rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and fluidity of smaller players. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and playing a drop shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That acts as a quite harsh limitation on his potential.

Fritz has achieved a several significant, unexpected improvements over the years. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. 24 months after, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he suddenly exploded to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and beating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a declining Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the ongoing slump of US male players winning grand slams when he had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply too much and the respect for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

The American star achieved a personal best run to the Wimbledon last four in the summer.

The American's performance in that exact quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an sign. The Serbian won in four rounds, a victory that only felt tenuous for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had saved a few match points and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American creating numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued service break opportunity after break point, extending the run to the point of agony. When Fritz finally did claim a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a terrible game to lose his own serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a battle secondary to the main contest and compelled him to use excessive effort to prevail. Down match points in the last game, his first serve sailed to heaven. He extended the match twice on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It was not a collapse, I didn’t think, just a result of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly compelling evidence that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to beat any form of Djokovic, who was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and did not particularly appeared like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly acceptable – Djokovic is the best player ever, and may not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has developed enough experience and tactical know-how to compensate for a significant portion of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was had not done anything that suggested he could.

The American is an asset to the tour nonetheless. He’s a patient, thoughtful presence in media sessions, exceeding almost anyone on the men's tour aside from Daniil Medvedev, willing to not just say how he feels or the strategy he believed determined a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for America failing to spawn a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the standings, maybe they can divide that load.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I don’t do it,” the American informed an interviewer in June of winning a grand slam. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t achieve that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable reign is in fact extremely unlikely for all other players. {