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I have a few thoughts regarding that comments delivered by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler after Novak Djokovic's victory over the American player during the US Open quarter-finals. Look – Fritz is American, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of disappointment would have been appropriate. Rather, Fowler invoked the ongoing absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a trophy 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. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, force of nature the Spanish star was waiting in the next round, whom he has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And had he someway survived that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also split the previous seven major titles (and the Spaniard proceeded to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz stated in press after the loss that he actually liked his path, because it offered the chance to beat the three best players in the world back-to-back. Fritz is well within his right to aspire to the achievement; an athlete is meant to have faith in themselves. But entering that Djokovic last eight match what other person sensibly had the drought of American champions in mind?

The American star's second serve the only thing standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, is ranked fourth in the world starting this week’s year-end championships and has won his previous six encounters over No 3 the German with growing comfort. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the coming years. But evidently that at present, that is as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of ranking points away. His elite delivery and powerful power on each front side and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to defeat the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. Against the handful of generational talents, however, he is frequently helpless. The past few seasons has seen the curious rise of tall, gangly players who can nonetheless cover the court with the alarming quickness and grace of smaller men. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the other player was controlling, and hitting a soft shot versus him is usually a reliable tactic. That acts as a quite severe limitation on his potential.

Fritz has made a several significant, unexpected advancements throughout his career. Early on of the ten-year period, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. 24 months later, he was approaching the top 10. The previous season, he suddenly exploded up to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the next leap, competing against and beating legendary figures like Alcaraz, Sinner, and including a aging Djokovic, is the highest of all. What was Fowler thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing drought of US male players 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 magnitude of the challenge too little.

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

Fritz’s performance in that exact quarter-final should have been enough of an indication. Djokovic won in four sets, a victory that only felt tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had survived a few championship opportunities and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo appeared well-balanced during the rallies, with the American creating numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved break point after service break opportunity, extending the run to the brink of agony. When he eventually did claim a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately played a horrendous game to drop serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and forced him to expend far too much energy to win it. Down set points in the last game, his first serve floated to heaven. He extended the contest twice on his backup delivery, but ultimately committed two errors. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, just a consequence of having to hit too many second serves.

The contest was quite ironclad evidence that Fritz is not good enough to beat any form of Djokovic, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and did not particularly appeared like he believed he could win. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has developed enough experience and tactical know-how to make up for a significant portion of the drop-off. The problem is the individuals who were expecting the American to prevail, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was had not accomplished anything that suggested he would.

The American is an valuable contributor to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in media sessions, more so than almost everyone on the men's tour except for the Russian star, willing to not only say how he feels or the tactic he felt decided a contest, but explain it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America failing to produce a male major champion since the last American titlist feels unfair. (Now that the fellow American is competing alongside him in the standings, maybe they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• 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,” Fritz told an interviewer in June of claiming a grand slam. It is hoped he understands that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t achieve that objective, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying reign is in fact extremely unlikely for all other players. {