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I possess some thoughts regarding that comments delivered by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler after Novak Djokovic's victory over Taylor Fritz during the US Open last eight. Look – Fritz is the United States, Fowler is American – and sports frequently lend themselves to nationalism. Some letdown would have been appropriate. Instead, he brought up the ongoing absence of American men at the majors: none of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the tournament.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, myself included. 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, whom Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also split the last seven major titles (and the Spaniard went on to defeat a tired Djokovic in the next round). He stated in press following his defeat that he in fact liked his draw, because it presented the chance to beat the three best competitors in the world back-to-back. Fritz is well within his right to aspire to the accomplishment; an athlete is supposed to believe in themselves. But going into that Serbian last eight match who else in their right mind had the drought of US winners on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s weaker delivery the only thing between her and sustained success

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the global rankings starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his last six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. It's likely he might claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that is as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of performance metrics away. Fritz’s elite delivery and powerful 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 frequently helpless. The past few years has seen the curious emergence of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless cover the court with the alarming speed and fluidity of much shorter men. Fritz 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 soft shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty harsh limitation on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a several significant, unexpected advancements throughout his career. Early on of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the lower end of the top 30. 24 months after, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded to fourth place – and maintained the spot. But the next leap, competing against and beating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and even a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could the commentator have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing drought of US male players lifting 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 insufficient.

The American star achieved a career-best run to the Wimbledon last four in the summer.

Fritz’s performance in that exact quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an sign. The Serbian triumphed in four rounds, a victory that only felt uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had saved a few match points and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with Fritz creating numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued break point after service break opportunity, extending the streak to the brink of agony. When Fritz finally did claim a single of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a terrible service game to lose his own serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the main contest and compelled him to use far too much effort to prevail. Facing match points in the last game, his primary delivery sailed to the sky. He prolonged the match twice on his backup delivery, but finally committed two errors. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, only a result of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly compelling proof that Fritz is not good enough to beat any version of the Serbian, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and did not especially seem like he thought he could win. This is perfectly acceptable – Djokovic is the best player ever, and may not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has acquired sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The problem is those who were expecting the American to prevail, 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, reflective voice in press conferences, exceeding virtually everyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not only say how he feels or the strategy he believed decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America not spawn a male major champion since the last American titlist feels unfair. (Now that the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

American legend Group

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

Swedish icon Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I fail to accomplish it,” the American informed a journalist in June of claiming a grand slam. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he does not achieve that objective, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable reign is actually extremely unlikely for all other players. {