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I possess a few opinions regarding that comments delivered by ESPN broadcaster a well-known announcer following the Serbian champion's victory over Taylor Fritz in the US Open last eight. Consider – Fritz is American, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of disappointment was understandable. Rather, he invoked the ongoing absence of American men at the majors: not one of them had lifted a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all enjoy a narrative, me too. But really. Even if Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the following match, whom he has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d someway survived that, it would have been title holder the Italian, against whom the American had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also split the last seven major titles (plus the Spaniard went on to defeat a fatigued Djokovic in the subsequent match). He said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he in fact liked his path, because it presented the opportunity to beat the top three players in the world in succession. He is well within his right to aim for the accomplishment; an athlete is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian last eight match what other person in their right mind had the drought of American champions in mind?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the only thing between her and sustained success

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked number four in the world starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has won his last six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s elite delivery and concussive strength on each front side and backhand are more than adequate to dispose of the majority of opponents on the ATP tour. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, Fritz is often overmatched. The last several seasons has witnessed the interesting rise of lanky, towering athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising speed and fluidity of much shorter men. He is six-foot-five and looks it. His movement 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 playing a soft shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite harsh restriction on his upside.

Fritz has made a several significant, improbable advancements throughout his career. At the beginning of the decade, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the elite ten. Last year, he suddenly surged up to fourth place – and held the spot. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and beating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and including a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What could the commentator thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the continuing slump of American men lifting major titles when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply too much and the respect for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

Taylor Fritz made a career-best run to the Wimbledon last four in the summer.

The American's play in that exact quarter-final ought to have been enough of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a victory that only seemed uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had survived a few championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with Fritz earning plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued break point after service break opportunity, prolonging the run to the brink of agony. When he eventually did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he promptly played a horrendous service game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had drawn him into a battle peripheral to the main contest and compelled him to use excessive effort to win it. Down match points in the last game, his primary delivery floated to heaven. He extended the match twice on his backup delivery, but finally double-faulted. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, only a result of having to hit too many second serves.

The match was quite ironclad proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of the Serbian, who was defeated by Alcaraz in the following match and never especially seem like he believed he could triumph. This is absolutely acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has developed sufficient experience and strategic intelligence to compensate for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to win, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that indicated he would.

The American is an asset to the tour regardless. He’s a patient, thoughtful voice in press conferences, exceeding almost anyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, willing to not just express his emotions or the strategy he felt determined a match, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for the United States failing to spawn a male major champion since the last American titlist seems unfair. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, maybe they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Group

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

Swedish icon Division

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

“I’d probably think about it indefinitely if I fail to do it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in the summer of claiming a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t fulfill that objective, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is in fact highly improbable for everybody else. {