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I have some opinions regarding the remarks made by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler after the Serbian champion's win over the American player in the New York major last eight. Consider – Fritz is the United States, Fowler is from the US – and sports often encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown was appropriate. Instead, Fowler brought up the ongoing absence of US male players at the majors: not one of them has won a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all love a narrative, myself included. But come on. Even if Fritz defeated Djokovic for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the following match, who he has yet to beat in an official match. And had he someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, against whom the American had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven grand slams (plus the Spaniard proceeded to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the next round). Fritz said in press after the loss that he actually preferred his draw, because it presented the opportunity to defeat the top three players in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is more than within his right to aim for the achievement; an athlete is meant to believe in themselves. But going into that Serbian last eight match who else sensibly had the drought of American champions in mind?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the sole barrier between her and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is ranked fourth in the global rankings starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has won his previous six encounters over third-ranked the German with growing comfort. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that at present, that is as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class delivery and powerful power on each forehand and reverse side are sufficiently enough to dispose of most opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of generational talents, however, he is frequently helpless. The past few seasons has witnessed the interesting rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the alarming speed and fluidity of smaller men. He is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His movement is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the other player was dictating, and playing a drop shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty severe limitation on his upside.

Fritz has made a several significant, unexpected advancements over the years. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. 24 months later, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded up to fourth place – and held the spot. But the next leap, mixing it up with and beating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a declining Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing slump of American men winning grand slams when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply excessive and the respect for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

The American star achieved a personal best advancement to the Wimbledon last four in July.

The American's performance in that exact last eight match should have been enough of an indication. The Serbian triumphed in four rounds, a victory that only felt uncertain for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had survived a couple match points and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The duo looked well-balanced during the rallies, with the American earning plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But the champion saved service break opportunity after service break opportunity, extending the run to the brink of frustration. When Fritz finally did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he promptly played a terrible game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle secondary to the real battle and compelled him to expend excessive effort to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, his first serve sailed to heaven. He prolonged the contest two times on his backup delivery, but finally committed two errors. It was not a choke, in my opinion, just a result of needing to hit too many second serves.

The match was fairly ironclad proof that the American is not good enough to defeat any form of Djokovic, who lost to the Spaniard in the next round and did not particularly appeared like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his physical powers now, but has developed enough experience and strategic intelligence to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not accomplished anything that indicated he could.

The American is an asset to the tour nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective voice in press conferences, more so than almost anyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, willing to not only say how he feels or the tactic he believed determined a match, but clarify it. That he should shoulder the majority of the blame for America failing to produce a male major champion since the last American titlist seems unjust. (Now that Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely dwell on it indefinitely if I fail to accomplish it,” Fritz informed a journalist in the summer of claiming a grand slam. It is hoped he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable reign is in fact highly improbable for all other players. {