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I have a few thoughts regarding that comments delivered by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz during the US Open last eight. Look – Fritz is the United States, the commentator is from the US – and sports frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment would have been appropriate. Instead, he brought up the continued absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the competition.

Everyone enjoy a storyline, myself included. But really. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the first time, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the next round, who he has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven major titles (and the Spaniard proceeded to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). He stated in post-match interviews following his defeat that he actually preferred his draw, because it offered the opportunity to defeat the top three competitors in the world in succession. He is more than within his right to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is meant to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian last eight match who else sensibly had the lack of American champions in mind?

The American star's second serve the only thing between her and consistent victories

Fritz, 28, is placed number four in the global rankings starting the upcoming year-end championships and has won his last six matches over third-ranked the German with growing comfort. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that at present, that’s as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s elite delivery and concussive power on both forehand and backhand are sufficiently enough to dispose of the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. Against the handful of generational talents, however, he is frequently overmatched. The past few years has witnessed the curious emergence of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising quickness 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 seldom steal a point that the other player was controlling, and hitting a drop shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite severe limitation on his potential.

Fritz has made a number of dramatic, improbable advancements over the years. Early on of the ten-year period, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the elite ten. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded to fourth place – and held the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and including a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What was Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the ongoing drought of American men lifting major titles when Fritz had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply excessive and the appreciation for the magnitude of the task too little.

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

Fritz’s performance in that exact last eight match ought to have been sufficient of an sign. Djokovic won in four sets, a victory that only seemed uncertain for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had saved a couple match points and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American creating numerous chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved service break opportunity after service break opportunity, prolonging the run to the brink of agony. When he finally did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a terrible service game to drop serve once more; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and forced him to use excessive effort to prevail. Down set points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to the sky. He prolonged the contest two times on his backup delivery, but ultimately committed two errors. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, only a consequence of having to hit too many second serves.

The contest was quite compelling proof that Fritz is not good enough to beat any form of the Serbian, that lost to the Spaniard in the following match and never particularly seem like he thought he could win. This is perfectly acceptable – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has developed enough knowledge and tactical know-how to compensate for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating the American to win, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that suggested he would.

The American is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a patient, thoughtful voice in media sessions, more so than virtually anyone on the men's tour aside from the Russian star, willing to not only say his emotions or the tactic he believed determined a match, but clarify it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for the United States not spawn a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist feels unfair. (Now that Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, maybe they can share that load.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Group

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I don’t accomplish it,” the American told a journalist in the summer of claiming a major. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not a failure if he does not achieve that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable empire is in fact highly improbable for everybody else. {