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I have a few opinions regarding that remarks delivered by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler after the Serbian champion's victory over the American player during the US Open quarter-finals. Consider – the athlete represents the United States, the commentator is American – and athletic competitions frequently encourage nationalism. Some letdown was understandable. Rather, Fowler invoked the ongoing drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them has won a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

Everyone love a storyline, myself included. But come on. Suppose Fritz had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the next round, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow survived that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, versus him the American had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven grand slams (and Alcaraz went on to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the next round). He said in press following his defeat that he in fact preferred his draw, because it presented the opportunity to defeat the top three players in the world back-to-back. He is more than within his right to aspire to the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But going into that Serbian quarter-final who else in their right mind had the drought of American champions on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s weaker delivery the only thing between her and consistent victories

The American, 28, is ranked number four in the world entering this week’s year-end championships and has won his previous six matches over No 3 the German with growing comfort. It's likely he could claim that position for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as far as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class serve and powerful power on each forehand and reverse side are sufficiently enough to dispose of most opponents on the ATP tour. When facing the select few generational talents, however, he is often overmatched. The last several years has seen the curious rise of lanky, towering athletes who can nevertheless move around with the surprising quickness and grace of smaller players. He 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 steal a point that the other player was dictating, and playing a soft shot against him is usually a safe bet. That acts as a pretty harsh restriction on his potential.

The American has made a number of significant, unexpected advancements over the years. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. Two years later, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he suddenly exploded to No 4 – and held the spot. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What was the commentator thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the continuing drought of American men winning grand slams when he had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply excessive and the respect for the magnitude of the task too little.

Taylor Fritz achieved a personal best run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

The American's performance in that very last eight match should have been sufficient of an indication. The Serbian won in four rounds, a win that only seemed tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had survived a few championship opportunities and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with Fritz earning plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But the champion rescued break point after service break opportunity, extending the run to the brink of agony. When he eventually did claim one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a horrendous service game to lose his own serve once more; the Serbian had drawn him into a battle secondary to the real battle and compelled him to expend excessive energy to prevail. Facing match points in the last game, his first serve sailed to heaven. He prolonged the contest two times on his backup delivery, but finally double-faulted. It was not a collapse, I didn’t think, just a result of having to hit too many second serves.

The contest was quite compelling evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to beat any version of the Serbian, who lost to Alcaraz in the following match and never particularly appeared like he thought he could win. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the height of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired sufficient experience and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is the individuals who were expecting the American to prevail, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was yet to done anything that indicated he would.

The American is an valuable contributor to the tour regardless. He’s a patient, thoughtful presence in press conferences, exceeding almost everyone on the men's tour aside from the Russian star, prepared to not only express how he feels or the strategy he felt determined a match, but explain it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for America failing to produce a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, perhaps they can divide that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Division

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Division

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I would likely dwell on it forever if I don’t accomplish it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in the summer of winning a grand slam. I hope he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that objective, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is actually extremely unlikely for all other players. {