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I have some opinions about the comments delivered by the sports network commentator a well-known announcer after Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz in the New York major quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents the United States, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions often lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of 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 Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all love a narrative, myself included. But really. Even if the American had beaten the legend for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was waiting in the next round, who Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And had he somehow survived that, it would have been title holder the Italian, against whom Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the last seven major titles (and the Spaniard went on to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the next round). Fritz said in press after the loss that he actually preferred his draw, because it offered the opportunity to beat the top three competitors in the sport in succession. Fritz is more than justified to aspire to the achievement; an athlete is meant to believe in themselves. But going into that Djokovic quarter-final who else in their right mind had the drought of American champions in mind?

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

The American, 28, is ranked number four in the world starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his last six encounters over No 3 the German with growing comfort. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that at present, that’s as far as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie a vast gap of ranking points away. His elite serve and powerful power on each forehand and backhand are sufficiently enough to defeat the majority of rivals on the ATP tour. When facing the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, he is often helpless. The last several seasons has seen the curious rise of tall, gangly players who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising speed and grace of much shorter players. Fritz is six-foot-five and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the other player was dictating, and playing a soft shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a pretty severe restriction on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a number of dramatic, unexpected advancements throughout his career. At the beginning of the decade, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. 24 months later, he was sniffing the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly surged to fourth place – and held the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and beating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What was the commentator 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 American men winning major titles when Fritz had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

Taylor Fritz made a personal best advancement to the Wimbledon semi-finals in the summer.

Fritz’s play in that exact quarter-final should have been enough of an indication. The Serbian triumphed in four sets, a victory that only felt uncertain for moments towards the very end, when Fritz had saved a couple championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with Fritz earning numerous chances to break. But Djokovic rescued break point after break point, prolonging the run to the point of agony. When Fritz eventually did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a horrendous game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had drawn him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and forced him to use far too much energy to win it. Down set points in the last game, his first serve sailed to the sky. He prolonged the contest twice on his second serve, but finally committed two errors. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, just a result of needing to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly compelling evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of Djokovic, who lost to Alcaraz in the following match and did not particularly seem like he thought he could win. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has developed sufficient experience and tactical know-how to compensate for a significant portion of the drop-off. The problem is those who were anticipating the American to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was had not done anything that suggested he could.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in press conferences, more so than almost everyone on the ATP aside from the Russian star, willing to not only express how he feels or the strategy he believed determined a match, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for the United States failing to spawn a male major champion since the last American titlist feels unfair. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Group

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I don’t do it,” Fritz told a journalist in the summer of claiming a grand slam. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not fulfill that objective, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable empire is in fact highly unlikely for everybody else. {