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I possess some thoughts about that comments delivered by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's victory over the American player during the New York major quarter-finals. Consider – the athlete represents American, Fowler is from the US – and sports frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment would have been appropriate. Instead, he brought up the continued drought of American men at the majors: not one of them has won a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all enjoy a storyline, me too. But come on. Even if the American had beaten the legend for the first time, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the next round, who he has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow survived that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, against whom Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also divided the last seven major titles (and the Spaniard proceeded to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz stated in post-match interviews after the loss that he actually preferred his path, because it presented the opportunity to defeat the three best players in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is more than within his right to aspire to the accomplishment; an competitor is meant to believe in themselves. But going into that Serbian last eight match who else sensibly had the lack of US winners in mind?

Coco Gauff’s weaker delivery the sole barrier between her and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is ranked number four in the world entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six matches over third-ranked the German with growing comfort. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that’s as far as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie a vast gap of performance metrics away. Fritz’s elite serve and concussive strength on both forehand and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to defeat most opponents on the ATP tour. Against the select few generational talents, though, Fritz is often overmatched. The last several seasons has seen the interesting rise of lanky, towering athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the alarming quickness and grace of smaller men. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the opponent was controlling, and playing a drop shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty severe limitation on his upside.

The American has achieved a several significant, improbable advancements throughout his career. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the world's best thirty. Two years later, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly surged to No 4 – and maintained the spot. But the next leap, competing against and defeating legendary figures like Alcaraz, the Italian, and including a declining Djokovic, is the highest of all. What was the commentator 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 drought of American men winning major titles when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge insufficient.

Taylor Fritz achieved a career-best run to the All England Club last four in the summer.

The American's performance in that exact quarter-final ought to have been enough of an sign. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a victory that only seemed uncertain for moments towards the very end, when Fritz had survived a couple match points and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American creating plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But the champion saved service break opportunity after service break opportunity, prolonging the run to the point of agony. When Fritz eventually did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately produced a terrible game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had drawn him into a battle peripheral to the main contest and compelled him to use far too much effort to win it. Down set points in the last game, his first serve floated to the sky. He extended the match two times on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, just a result of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly compelling proof that the American is not good enough to defeat any version of the Serbian, that lost to Alcaraz in the following match and never particularly appeared like he believed he could win. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the height of his physical powers now, but has developed enough knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The issue is the individuals who were anticipating the American to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, exceeding almost anyone on the ATP aside from Daniil Medvedev, willing to not only say how he feels or the strategy he felt decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for the United States not spawn a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unjust. (Since the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, maybe they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Division

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

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I fail to do it,” the American informed a journalist in the summer of winning a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that goal, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is actually extremely unlikely for everybody else. {